


Mr. Bad Guy

by WataruWatanabe



Series: In the Scenic Town of Underground [1]
Category: Shingeki no Kyojin
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-02-19
Updated: 2015-04-25
Packaged: 2018-03-13 20:43:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 6
Words: 28,346
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3395705
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WataruWatanabe/pseuds/WataruWatanabe
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Eren Jäger is a troubled youth, waiting for the day his cycle of pain will be broken.<br/>Armin Arlert is a bright young man in his senior year of high school who just knows this year is slated to be different.</p><p>They meet at Rose High and their circle of life is broken and made wider.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Let's go Chasing Rainbows in the Sky

**Author's Note:**

> Hello once again! This is based of the song Mr.Bad Guy by Queen (1985). I've also used some references to the movie Kill Your Darlings because I think it works so well with this. Enjoy!

It was a bright autumn day, the first day of senior year of high school, when Armin Arlert stepped onto Rose High School's campus. The sun was shining bright as can be, and the sky as clear as clear because there were no clouds to drift lazily across the sky. The campus was miraculously clean even though it was the very definition of a pig sty during the school year. Seeing the school in such pristine form put Armin in a good mood, and he just knew that something special would happen this year.

In fact he had awoken to the hunch that this year was going to be amazing. He was still with his girlfriend Annie Leonhardt, a small, petite, muscular girl who was quiet and shrewd looking on the outside, but one of the nicest people Armin ever had the luck to meet; his grandfather was still healthy and kicking, so much so he still worked at the public library. He was still friends with Jean Kirstein, whom he had grown up with, and best of all, it was the last year of his high school career before he could go and study marine biology. Plus, his gut told him that he would have the best experiences of his life; what they were, he couldn't say, but he knew that whatever it was was going to happen this year.

***

It was the first day of senior year for Eren Jäger, who wished he never had to go. He was done; sick and tired of every piece of crap that got dumped on him at school, he just wanted to stop this cycle of crap. He wanted to break the circle of life, hurt, that repeated everyday, never tiring, never stopping, continuous until the moment something hit the rim and the circle was broken. Actually, he guessed, he was waiting for that one phenomena that would break it, free him. He had been waiting since the moment his mother's death had broken his circle and launched him into a new one, a worse one. He had waited for eight years; eight years spend hoping for something better that had never came. Year after fucking year he waited, and each day it never came; he had finally given up hope. He was stuck in this never ending cycle full of pain, and it was his destiny; the universe's big F U to him. He had decided this is how the universe wanted to be noticed, and he stopped fighting it when he realized that it didn't care what his feelings about it were; it was going to do what it pleased because it didn't care about its inhabitants. 

So, because the universe loathes him, holds him with the highest distain, Eren was forced by his father to attend his new high school after being expelled from the old one. His adopted sister Mikasa would also be joining him, much to his dislike. Eren loved Mikasa, but he was sick and tired of her being there in every moment he failed himself, every moment the circle of hurt renewed itself. He wanted for once to live his crap life without anyone watching, let him fuck up his life how he pleased. He wished for once he wouldn't turn around and see the disappointment in her eyes; he wished he wasn't loved. But he was, and this love followed him onto the campus of Rose High.

"Eren," Mikasa said in her cool, monotonous voice, " wait for me." Eren was speed walking his way across the front lawn, trying to get as far away from her as possible. "Eren."  
Mikasa said again. Eren still ignored her, causing her to sigh and give up on her present attempt to try and communicate with her brother; she knew he was gone and in his own world.

***

"Hey, Armin!" Marco shouted across the grassy main quad when he spotted the short blonde bob shining in the autumn sun. Armin turned and saw Jean and Marco hand in hand; he gave a little smile to see his two friends were happy with each other.

Last year, Jean had been extremely curious about his orientation, and Marco had been very much into Jean, so Armin had helped to bring the two together. He had asked both Marco and Jean to come hang out with him and Annie at an arcade, and from there, things took off between the two. They hung out for the whole day; Jean went over to Marco's house, and there they kissed; it left Jean with no doubt in his mind he wanted Marco. So, they started going out and had a steady thing since; which, Armin was glad for. It would have been extremely awkward for all parties involved if there was a falling out, but Armin was genuinely happy his friends had found love.

"Armin, you ready for classes?" Jean asked as Armin made his way over to the couple. Armin nodded his head as Marco pulled him into a hug.

"Yep. I can't wait for this year to officially get on its way; I just know it's going to be amazing." Armin told them, excitement evident in his voice. Jean smirked and shook his head.

"Don't you say that about every school year?" Jean questioned him as he ruffled the blonde's hair. Armin scrunched up his nose and swatted Jean's hand away.

"No this year is going to be different than the others." Armin said as the bell for first period rang.

"We'll see," Jean said as the three of them went on their way to their new classes.

***

Eren walked into his art class as his first period of the day wishing the whole world would just cave in and die. He didn't want to see any of the stupid kids talking to their long time friends, huddling in groups at the tables, smiling without a care in the world. Looking at them, he could feel disgust boiling in the pit of his stomach. He sat himself at the art table in the corner, glowering at anyone who attempted to talk to him. To his satisfaction, the other students stayed away, except for one.

A short blonde kid, a boy or a girl he couldn't say, came walking right up to him after surveying the classroom at the door. Eren straight out glared at the kid, but the smile on their face never left once. They took a seat next to him, giving a friendly wave before putting their light blue backpack on the table.

Eren stared at the kid from the corner of his eye, looking for hints to its gender. Upon closer examination, Eren saw an Adam's apple, put the rest of the facial feature were inherently feminine. The soft jaw line, big powder blue eyes, full lips, and long lashes all screamed girl. As Eren eyed him, the guy turned to face Eren, sticking out his hand for a shake.

"Hi, I'm Armin." the boy said in a pitch just barely believable as a guy's. Eren looked at the hand with annoyance, rolled his eyes and turned away.

"I don't give a shit. Don't talk to me." Eren said, aggression dripping off his voice. Armin cringed at the tone, but it didn't seem to deter him in the slightest.

"Well, I'm sorry to say this, but you're going to have to talk to people since the first day is all about getting to know each other." Armin said as he placed his hands in his lap and looked down. Eren turned and gave him a glare.

"Like I give a damn. I could be rotting in hell and the only way out is to talk to you guys, and I still wouldn't do it." Eren said. Armin's eyes widened in shock, but before he could respond the teacher started talking. 

It was an old man, bald with a gray mustache. He had crinkles around his eyes that gave them a warm feeling when he smiled. He marched in the front of the class room, military like, stopped in the center, and cleared his throat.

"I'm Mr.Pixis, your art instructor for the year. I hope that this year will be fun and excellent, and I believe you all do as well. So, first things first, you should get to know your classmates and me. To do this I want all of you to draw something that has symbolic resonance with you. It can be anything, so long as it's school appropriate. You have thirty minutes then you will present it to the person sitting next to you. You may begin." Pixis said as he handed out a blank sheet of paper to the tables around the room. 

"This is fucking great," Eren muttered under his breath as Pixis placed two sheets of paper on the table. Pixis smiled at Eren and spoken quietly enough so only he would hear.

"You'll be surprised what this can lead to. You might find what you've been looking for all your life."

Eren stared at Pixis' back as he retreated, awe in his eyes at the fact Pixis seemed to see into his soul; the soul he had thought so black it was impossible to see it anymore.

***

'Wow,' Armin thought as he began sketching his art piece, 'could I have sat next to a doucher guy?' Armin was highly offended by the aggressive air his neighbor was putting on. 'We don't even know each other, and he already seems like he hates me. Seriously, what is his problem?' Thoughts like these weaved in and out of Armin's head as he worked on his drawing. And, all too soon it seemed to him, it was time to show his neighbor his picture.

"Alright," Pixis called into the silence of the room, "please show your picture to your neighbor and explain the reason why it means something to you." Armin rolled his shoulders and prepared for the worst, but when he turned to look at the other person's picture, his mind was blown away.

The other boy's picture seemed to almost mirror his own. It was gruesome picture, much gruesomer than his own, but they each had a circle in the back round that showed different phases. Armin noticed the other boy staring quite intently at his, his brow furrowed deeply.

"What the fuck?" the other boy whispered. "Did you copy mine?" he asked louder this time, anger in his voice. Armin shook his head wildly.

"No, no I didn't. This is a drawing about the cycle of life that appears in Yeats' book, A Vision. Yeats believed that life was a continuous circle that always repeated to the beginning. He believed the circumference was constant until an outside force hit the circle, breaking the cycle, and making the circle wider." Armin explained rapidly, his voice and eyes lighting up in excitement as he talked about on of his favorite subjects: writing; it might have been the only thing that got in the way with his love for marine biology. As his explanation came to a close, he saw the boy's eyes widened in what appeared to be wonder.

"That's ... that's all explained in a book?" he asked his voice softer, no venom whatsoever. Armin nodded his head vigorously.

"Yes. Didn't you know about it since you basically drew it?" Armin asked motioning to the boy's picture. The boy shook his head and looked down, his brow furrowed deeply again.

"No... I just drew a circle behind the person to express the idea that life is a never ending cycle of pain." The boy's voice was quiet, and strangely, even though this boy had been an ass to him, Armin's heart broke a little to hear the boy say that his picture represented an never ending cycle of hurt that he experienced. Armin felt his look soften, and he placed a hand on the boys shoulder.

"I understand. I've felt that way too over the years, but I think you'll find something that will break the circle. I know I did, so it isn't impossible for you."

***

Eren took one look at Armin's face after he told him that something would break the circle, and he knew he wanted to punch him in the face. He made Eren feel naked; he had somehow managed to see what he had held inside for so many years. He was able to see that he had suffered and was still, deep down, waiting for something to break the cycle. He saw his pain and tried to comfort him, didn't shy away from the mess that was Eren Jäger. The blonde's uncanny ability had left him vulnerable, and he wanted to lash out to escape the feeling. Yet, under the surface hid a pleasant little feeling: a feeling of hope. Deep down he was left thinking that maybe Armin would be the one to break his circle. Eren glared at Armin for awhile until he huffed an annoyed sigh and looked away.

"Whatever, I gave up hope on some stupid ass dream like that a long time ago." Eren said. He knew that he never should have said that when he saw Armin's expression turn sorrowful. He cringed on the inside to think that once again there was another person who looks disappointed by his failure at life.

"Do you really believe that?" Armin asked quietly as he looked down at his drawing. Eren cocked and eyebrow.

"Why would I say it if I didn't believe it?" Eren asked him, feeling his anger boiling inside about this whole situation. It pissed him off he shared anything with the blonde kid next to him.

"Maybe because you're afraid to give yourself the benefit of the doubt. You don't want to hope to just be disappointed because it doesn't happen after you've waited so long for it to happen." Armin whispered as his eyes filled with tears. "If that's the case, that's not a way to live your life. That's just becoming a living corpse." One lone tear fell on the soft cheeks of the blonde, and he quickly wiped it away. Eren stared at Armin, lost for words at the scene before him.

"What the hell are you crying for? I don't cry about, so why the fuck are you?" Eren asked annoyed.

"Because I've lived my life like that before. That's no way to live! That isn't living; that isn't life! There's so much more; there's actual beauty. There is joy in life! You just have to find the thing that lets you have it." Armin cried, more tears spilling down his cheeks.

At the sight of the blonde's tears for him, Eren felt a little flutter in the place his heart was supposed to be. He couldn't believe anyone else could understand his feelings, but Armin seemed to. So, Eren did something he'd never done before: he wiped away a tear from Armin's cheek. It was pure impulse, but he knew once he done it he had just sent out a signal. One that said let's be friends.

Armin's looked at him, his big eyes wider than before at the gentle action. Then a smile broke across his face. It was like pure sunshine, and it melted a little of the snow that was surrounding Eren's heart, unbeknownst to Eren.

"Does this mean you'll try to live life...?" Armin trailed off looking for the name of this teal eyed boy before him.

"Eren. Eren Jäger." Eren told him. "I guess I'll try to see this crappy perception of life you have where there are rainbows in the sky, probably with unicorns as well." Eren said, his voice slightly disgusted. Armin laughed and reached for Eren's hand. He grabbed it and shook it before speaking again.

"Yep, you'll have to come chasing rainbows in the sky with me so we can find pots of gold and leprechauns. You'll have to see the world and all the colors it offers."

"Alright pass your papers in. I can't wait to see you all again soon." Pixis spoke as the bell for second period rang.

Eren got up and as he walked passed Pixis, the teacher whispered in his ear,

"Told you that it leads to unexpected things. Have a good day, Mr. Jäger." 

Eren was shocked that the teacher had once again seen the depth of his soul, but he shrugged it off as he made his way to the next class of the day.

This was the beginning of a beautiful year for the both of them.


	2. It's my Invitation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please enjoy! I'm liking writing Eren with an attitude problem and I hope you enjoy reading it!

After that fateful day in art class, Armin and Eren had seemed to become friends; albeit, Eren never hung out with Armin outside of class. Everyday for the past two weeks, Armin had been trying to find Eren during nutrition and lunch, but he had never seen the brunette. He looked all over campus, yet the boy with the bad attitude seemed to be the most elusive thing on the planet. Because of this, Armin had taken to venting to his girlfriend, Annie, about it after school when he had still not found Eren.

"Annie, this is so annoying. I really want you guys to meet him. He's really kind of nice under all the tough guy act." Armin complained to Annie as they walked to her house, hand in hand. She looked at Armin while he talked, but looked away as she begins speaking.

"Maybe we should just go to your first period early. He might wait there for the bell to ring, since you say he's always the first one in there before you." Annie suggested to him in her quiet voice as they walled up the drive to her house. Armin turned to look at her and was immediately awestruck.

The afternoon light hit Annie's face, lighting an orange fire in the cold ice blue eyes. The lower sun gave her porcelain skin an orange tint, lent a blush to her cheeks, and made her pale blonde hair a dark golden color that had orange tints blended throughout. The image was breath taking; all Armin could do was look at the girl in front of him and stare, not because she was just beautiful, but also because she had helped him find a solution to his Eren problem. They stayed looking at each other for what could have been hours until Annie finally broke the silence.

"Armin," she started in her soft voice, "what is it?" Armin gave her a soft smile; it spread slowly and gently across his face as he leaned in to her ear.

"I was just amazed by how beautiful a person you are." he whispered into the shell of her ear, causing her to shiver and make a light rose color spread across her cheeks. She put her head down, her bangs falling in one elegant sweep to cover her face.

"Thank you," she whispered softly. The smile that Armin wore got bigger and he grabbed her chin gently. He brought it up to face his and placed a soft kiss to her lips. Annie melted into the kiss and leaned against Armin, her head buried in his chest.

As they stood there, on her front porch, the sound of a car honking startled them apart. They looked towards the street and saw Annie's father in a car, looking highly pissed. Armin blushed and rubbed his arm. Annie schooled her face into her normal blank expression and walked to her father. Armin stayed on the porch, not wanting to interrupt the two. Wordless mumbles of Annie and her father's voices drift over to him in the wind that rustles the trees, making the clouds in the sky drift along.

After a while, Annie turned around and walked back to Armin, her face still emotionless and vague. When she reached him, she spoke, her voice deadpan.

"My father and I are going out for lunch, so you need to leave." Armin looked down at her and gave a gentle smile.

"Alright. I'll text you later, Annie." He pulled her into a hug; she reciprocated and hugged him back. After a moment, he broke the contact, but before he does, he whispered in her ear, "I love you." Armin pulled away and saw a light blush on her cheeks. She looked up and her ice blue meets his powder blue ones.

"I love you." she said loud enough Armin was sure her father heard. His heart kind of sped up at the thought but ignores it since he was happy that she said it back. He smiled at her before he turned to walk down the drive, giving a wave to her father as he makes his way home.

***

The next morning, Eren was sitting outside his art class, way in the back of the school, staring off into space. His chocolate colored mess of hair is partially hidden under the grey hood of his layer leather jacket: grey sweatshirt material under the black leather. Under his hood, he also concealed a pair of headphones. The music came blaring into his eardrums as he thought; one drifting after another in his head.

He was thinking about Armin when he saw two pairs of shoes walk up in front of him. He looked up and almost smiled when he saw it was Armin, but he took notice of the girl beside him. Her face was expressionless like Mikasa's, but her deadpan seemed creepy. He kept his eye trained suspiciously on her as he took out his earphones. Eren noticed Armin look nervously from him to the girl beside him, watching what was quickly becoming a glaring contest.

"Hey Eren," said Armin. Eren finally broke his glare and looked at Armin. Looking at the blonde boy before him, Eren felt a little flutter once again in the place where his heart should be, but he ignored the feeling.

"Hey." The tension between the three was getting so thick you could almost see it. Armin gave a nervous laugh, and he rubbed the back of his arm.

"I wanted to introduce you to my girlfriend, Annie. I thought that it would be nice if you guys got to know each other a little." Armin said, still rubbing his arm nervously. Eren glances from Armin to the girl, Annie, and back again, a sense of dislike broiling in his stomach.

Eren closed his eyes, biting down on his gum to keep the annoyed sigh from escaping his lips as he stands up. He opened his teal eyes and extended a tan hand to Annie.

"I'm Eren," Eren told her, his voice slightly deadpan. She arcs the thin blonde eyebrow of her left side at his gesture. Her cold blue eyes shift to Armin, who gives an encouraging nod. A sigh, just barely audible, leaves her lips as she takes Eren's hand, giving it a firm shake. 

"Annie." the girl said, her voice just as emotionless as her eyes. Armin gave a nervous giggle as the glare contest starts again. 

"What do you say we go sit at the table over there and talk, guys?" Armin asked, trying to break the quickly growing tension. Both Eren and Annie nod their heads, breaking the death grip each had on the other's hand. They walk to the plain black wooden table and sit down, Annie and Armin across from Eren. "So, guys, what's your favorite color?" Armin asked, nodding his head.

It takes everything Eren has not to roll his eyes. 'God, could he think of stupider questions to ask?' Eren thought as he watched the golden blonde looking anxious. 'But I should humor him since he's trying.'

"Red."

"Blue." Both Annie and Eren answer simultaneously, then glare at each other.

"Really? I like orange personally. So, Eren, any reason you like red?" Armin asked, trying to start a conversation. 'Fuck.' Eren thought. 'I don't want to go there with this bitch here. If it was just Armin maybe, but her- hell no.'

"No. Do I need a fucking reason?" Eren asked harshly, making Armin flinch slightly. 'Great, take it out on  
him, dumbass. You know it isn't going to solve --' Eren thoughts are interrupted by a cold voice cutting across the table.

"Don't talk to him that way." Annie told him, glare in her eye. This sets him off.

"Shut the fuck up. What the hell does it matter to you? You think just cause your his 'girlfriend' you need to be in his business? What the fuck? Who wants a relationship where everything has to be know to the other? It's suffocating. And I'll talk to him however I damn well please. He either accepts me or rejects me. So butt the fuck out." Eren said as he slammed his fist on the table. Eren glares at Annie for a minute before standing up and leaving the table: hate boiling in his guts, one blonde ready to murder him, the other worried about him.

***

That day Eren didn't show up for art, and Armin was left extremely anxious. He wanted to talk to Eren about what had happened earlier, apologize for doing something he should have know wasn't a good idea.

He also wanted an actually explanation to give Annie as to why he acted that way and a reason to stay friends with him. He had had a hell of time calming her down, but even after the fact, Armin couldn't hate Eren after how he had talked to her. He knew it was wrong; he knew he should be pissed, but some part of him wouldn't let him. He didn't want to lose this asshole of a boy with a rat's nest for hair. He had felt an instant connection between the two the minute he laid eyes on Eren.

When he saw the pissed off boy, glaring in his seat, Armin knew that he was what was going to be different about this year. His body told him, that asshole-ish looking guy is who you are destined to meet. And he didn't regret sitting next to him. The only thing he regretted since meeting Eren was the fact he had pissed off the one person who could really understand Yeats', A Vision. He wanted Eren back to apologize and put this shit behind them.

So throughout the day his thoughts wandered to Eren. He dazed out, and finally when the bell rang, he could have some true quiet time to think. He told Annie he was going to walk by himself today, then took his leave to his homely house, his grandfather. 

Armin walked through the streets, his mind full of the boy with the teal eyes when he saw the familiar rat's nest out of the corner of his eye. He felt his heart rate speed up as he turned to look. There it was. The retreating back of Eren Jäger. 'Eren.' he thought.

Armin set off in the pursuit of the boy; the other apparently oblivious to the trailing blonde. Armin picked up his pace as Eren walked through an alley that cut to the library. With each step that Armin got closer to Eren, his heart sped up till finally it was pumping in his ears as he ran to snag Eren's jacket sleeve. He caught in his delicate hand and tugged. Eren turned around, and for some unfathomable reason, Armin's breath hitched. He looked up to those teal eyes and his heart just kind of gave out.

"Eren," Armin whispered in a breathless voice. 

"Armin." Eren said quietly, some kind of fire in his eyes.

"Can we talk? I want to clear things up." Eren's eyes widened.

"Why the hell would you want to fix things with me? I was an asshole. I basically insulted you and your girlfriend." Eren said bitterly, his face hardening over.

"I know I should be mad, Eren, but I'm not. I want to stay friends with you, so I'm sorry for this morning. I should have realized Annie isn't the easiest to get along with at the first meeting." Armin said, his slightly thick eyebrows knitted together. Eren blew out a sigh and slid down against the wall of the alley, onto the floor.

"What the fuck is wrong with you? You have every right there is to be pissed off at me, but you apologize to me? Are you smoking something?" Eren asked with his head buried in his arms that are propped up by his knees. Armin slid down next to him.

"No, I have never done drugs in my life. And, I don't think there's anything wrong with me. I know what you did was horrible." A pain shot through Eren where his heart was supposed to be. "But, I don't want to lose you. You are the first person who has ever understood the circle of life purposed by Yeats. You are the first person I've ever felt a resonance with right off the bat. This is honestly the first time I've gone out of my way to make a friend. Always, always, I just used to wait for people to take an interest in me. I never went out and sought friendship until I saw you in the classroom the first day of school. Something just told me to be friends with you. So I don't want to give this up." Armin paused and silence spread between them, thick like molasses. Armin heard Eren swallow, but didn't speak. He couldn't see Eren's face but decided to talk some more anyways. "Only if that's okay with you." Armin swallowed. 'Please, God, please let him say yes.' Armin thought as he stared at Eren's hunched figure.

"Me too." It was mumbled but Armin knew it was a good sign, so he prodded Eren.

"You too what?" Armin asked.

"I ... your... you broke my circle." Eren mumbled into his arms. Armin's face lit up, waiting for Eren to expound. "You were the thing I've been waiting for for all these goddamn years. You hit the edge of the circle, broke it, and made it wider. For once there is some actual joy in this crap life I've lived the past eight years. I look forward to coming to school just to see you. I ... don't want to lose this either. You're the first person who has ever just got me, not even my sister Mikasa has done that." Armin felt his heart swell with joy at Eren's words. 'We can still be friends.' he thought. 'He feels the exact same way.' Armin leaned to the side and placed his head on Eren's shoulder.

"That's weird how we seem to think the same on so many things. Maybe we have a special connection."

"Maybe." Eren mumbled.

"Well, whatever the case, would you like to hang out with me and my friends? It's my invitation." Armin asked, his head still on Eren's shoulder. He felt Eren shift, and saw the brunette looking at him like he was crazy.

"You really want me to meet your other friends after today? You're a fucking loon." Eren said as he leaned farther back against the wall, shifting his arm to be around Armin's shoulders. Armin laughed.

"You're right I'm the bull goose loony, but I want to spend more time with you. I know that you probably won't explode again if I don't dig into personal stuff." Armin said as he snuggled into Eren.

"Really? Since when were you Randle Patrick McMurphy?" Eren asked. Armin raised his eyebrows in surprise.

"You've read One Who Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest?" Eren gave him an incredulous look.

"What, surprised an asshat like me reads?" Armin gave a shy smile.

"Yeah. To be honest, I thought you would think it's lame."

"I used to, but I'm getting more interested now that I know you. You introduced me to something I found I really like, beatniks." Eren said.

"Of course you would love something that has to do with challenging authority." Armin said, a soft smile playing across his lips.

"Yep."

The two sat in silence, Eren with his arm around Armin, Armin basking in Eren's warmth, until Eren broke the silence.

"Red's my favorite color because it was my mom's favorite color." Armin looked up and saw Eren staring into space, straight ahead.

"Really? Do you know why your mother likes red?" Armin watched as Eren shook his head.

"No. She died before I ever got to ask her. So that's why I love red. It's to keep as much of her with me as possible." Eren's voice trembled as he spoke, and Armin saw a tear make its slow way down his face. 'Eren.' Armin reached up and wiped away the tear.

"I'm sorry. I kind of know the feeling. My parents both died when I was about three. That was the universe wanting to be noticed-' Eren turned and grabbed Armin into a fierce hug. He buried his face in Armin's neck, and Armin felt the moisture against his skin. It sent a shiver down his spine.

"It hurts." was all Eren whispered as he cried on Armin. Armin sat there, just holding him as the boy with the bad attitude cried his eyes out.

They stayed together like that for a while until Eren had calmed. His breathing returned to normal, and Armin was glad. Eren broke the hug and looked into Armin's face. Armin gave a kind smile but felt his heart skutter as he saw Eren look down at his lips. He swallowed thickly and felt himself lean in, knowing Eren was doing the same. Armin looked at Eren's lips and felt an excitement build up in his stomach. Just as they were inches away from each other, a phone rang. Eren jumped away, and pulled out his phone.

"Goddamn it," he said as he looked at the screen. He answered the phone and Armin returned to himself, his heart beating like a rabbit's. 'What was I just about to do?' He was caught up in thoughts like this until Eren's voice brought him out of it.

"I have to go. Mikasa's having a fucking fit because I'm not under her watchful eye." Eren said as he got up and dusted off his pants. He put out his tan hand and helped pull Armin up. "I'll see you later." He waved and walked away, leaving Armin highly confused.

***

When Eren got home, he went to his room immediately and shut the door. He plopped down on his bed, just staring up at the ceiling. After a while his voice penetrated the pervading quiet of the room.

"You are so fucking screwed. You have a damn crush on Armin. Congratulations, Jäger, you are now officially a queer."

The realization rocked his already shaky world. When he had wanted to break the circle, he didn't mean he wanted to get thrown into a wider one where he would be ostracized even more. 'Just one more way for the universe to fuck with me and be noticed,' Eren decided as he rolled onto his side.

This was the day Eren got an invitation to join Armin's world, and one he would take to get closer to him. He wanted to take a trip on the life Armin led.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, we now have Eren admitting he's gay and they both love One Who Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kelsey. What is to happen next?


	3. Let's All Take a Trip on my Estancy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Armin goes over to Eren's house, and, boy, was that surprising.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for such a long period. I had no idea what to do. I was unhappy with this chapter, but enjoy.

After the fateful talk, Armin and Eren had managed to cover over the rocky patch of their friendship, but nothing much really changed. Eren was still the kid with a dirt mouth, bad attitude, and rat's nest for hair; Armin was still intelligent, shy, and with Annie. However, Armin had been introduced to Mikasa, and Annie had given Eren another shot- she begrudgely allowed Eren to continue his friendship with Armin because she saw how happy it made him. On the other hand, Annie and Mikasa got along extraordinary well together, sometimes even including Eren on their talks about martial arts. (Apparently, Eren used to compete before his mother died.)

It was during one of these days where they were just hanging out, the genders talking amongst themselves about different things, did Eren make a shocking suggestion.

"Hey, Armin?" Eren interrupted as Armin spoke about sharks. Armin stopped, his eyes agleam, cocking his head to the side to show Eren could continue. "Do you want to come over Saturday?" Armin's already naturally large eyes got even larger.

"Is... is that okay?" Armin asked tentatively. "I don't want to intrude upon anything." He tilted his head shyly down. Eren rolled his eyes and gave a slight playful punch to Armin's jaw.

"If I thought you would be an asshole, I wouldn't bother to invite your ass in the first place." Eren said as he looked at Armin. The blonde got slightly pink and scrunched his brows together.

"I guess. What time?" 

"Around twelve-ish." Eren answered. Armin smiled, and the place where Eren's heart was supposed to be fluttered again.

***

The week passed much faster than Armin had expected it to; albeit, he had spent most of it torn between being afraid and ecstatic about going over to Eren's. He was glad he was finally getting to know Eren better, yet he was worried about the way his father would see him. Armin was constantly worried that Eren's father would hate him, and he wouldn't be allowed over ever again. He had voiced this to Annie many a time, and the day before was no exception.

"I'm so worried. What if his father hates me? What if he doesn't want me to see Eren anymore?" Armin said as they sat together in the Arlert's living room. 

The room was cozy; it was painted an soft yellow that gave the room an warm glow, and the furniture was all highly plush even after thirty years of use. There was a soft tan coloured rug that sat on the floor, and a small TV in front of the couch. There were wide windows on either side of the room, helping to give the room it's soft glow. There was also a small low bookcase full of books with a picture of Armin's parents on top. 

Annie leaned in closer to Armin and held his hand. 

"I seriously doubting he wouldn't like you. Eren's dad will probably think you're God's gift to him to fix Eren. You know Eren's a delinquent. His father will be overjoyed that Eren actually made a respectable friend. He would most likely ask you to live there if he thought it would help Eren.   
"So stop worrying. It's not like you're a boyfriend about to meet his girlfriend's family." Annie finished as she kissed Armin's cheek. Armin blushed profusely when he realized Annie had made fun of him.

"Annie, I'm not acting like that!" Armin whined. Annie gave a small smirk.

"Nope. You are. You're more nervous than when you had to meet my dad." 

"Annie!" She leaned in and kissed Armin's lips.

"I love you." Armin felt his breath hitch as he stared into her cool blue eyes once again heated with a low burning fire. He took in her face and was blown away by the beauty of her features that worked well on her face despite being masculine.

"I love you too." Armin whispered back, gently cupping Annie's face with his hands. He took her lips with his own, and there was a slow burning fire building between them. When they pulled away both were struck with a sense of lust that ran deeper than ever before. Armin could feel a tent starting to pitch in his pants as they looked at one another. He took her into another kiss, this more desperate and needy. Annie broke away just a fraction and whispered against his lips,

"I want you to be my first time." Armin felt himself reel from the suggestion. 

It was a big step in their relationship to say this. They had been going out for all of high school so far, but not once had Annie expressed a desire for this. He had thought that that bridge had been further away, but here it was right in front of them and he had to decide. Annie was ready but was he? He knew he liked her. She was the first person to ever really stand up for him, to show an interest in what he liked, to ask him how he was, to see that under the surface he wasn't okay, and for that he loved her. She had brought him out of his shell. He could feel a connection with her that was more than just lovers, almost like soul mates. But did he want to take it that way? 

He stayed silent for a long time, just staring into Annie's eyes. Eventually he spoke, hoping it was the right answer.

"Annie, I love you, but I'm not sure I'm ready for this. I think there's something special between us; I'm just not sure if I want to add that to it. You mean a lot to me, Annie. I owe you for who I am now. I don't want to ruin our bond by doing that if it isn't what both of us want. I know you want it, and I respect that. I know I've thought of you that way before, but I just don't want to hurt you. I guess I'm afraid to take this step because I don't want to lose you." Annie's eyes softened as Armin finished. She gave the gentlest smile Armin had ever seen her give as she hugged him.

"Armin, it's alright. The fact you think so much of me is enough. I can wait till you're ready because you don't want to hurt me." Armin hugged her back, but somewhere in the recesses of his brain he felt a nagging.

*** 

"Eren! Hurry up or you'll be late to school!" Karla Jäger shouted up the stairs at her son. Eren heard and he grumbled, smuggling deeper into his covers. 

He felt himself sinking back into sleep when his warmth was stripped away from him. He opened his eyes and saw his mother tawny eyes glaring at him. He groaned and rolled over, his back towards her.

"Oh no you don't, Eren. I told you to get up. You have to go to school, and I'm done playing nice." Karla reached under Eren and wrapped her arms around his middle, pulling him out of bed. This was pretty amazing considering he was nine. Eren squeaked as he felt himself set roughly on his feet. He glared at his mother, who just laughed. "Don't try to be indigent. It wouldn't have happened if you had gotten ready like I asked. Now go get ready." Karla said as she gave Eren's bottom a slap to get him in gear. He gave a rueful glare as he went to get ready.

***

The scene changed to a park, just a little ways away from Eren's elementary school. Both Eren and his mom were, walking along the sidewalk, Eren farthest away from the street.

"Eren, you cannot be a race car driver. That is too dangerous." Karla said as they walked along towards the park entrance.

"But mom! It's so cool! Driving a car and seeing everything rush past! That's what I want to do!" Eren said with a slight grin. His eyes burned brightly as he talked passionately.

"Eren, there are much more things that are cool and less dangerous." Karla said sternly. "You should consider becoming a engineer then if you like cars. Then you would be able to make cars that go super fast." Eren felt his shoulders droop.

"But making them wouldn't be as fun as racing them!"

"Yes it would. You just have to give it a shot, Eren. Also if you're an engineer you could build so many different things. Or maybe you could be an artist. Then you could draw the cars or other things." Eren gave his mother a skeptical look. Karla saw and smiled. "Or you could be a writer. You could write about how fast the cars went when they raced and talk  
about all the cool facts. You could share your like for cars with lots of people." Eren eyes light up.

"Really!?" he asked excitedly. He was willing to give up driving if he could still talk about the cars for a job.

"Yep."Karla said with a nod of her head. "You can talk about cars and get paid for it."

"That's so co--" Eren never got to finish.

A car had barrelled up onto the sidewalk and taken out his mother. They had been holding hands and Eren hadn't let go even as the impact tried to force him away from his mother. He still held her hand, even while she was buried under a car wheel, her legs crushed and back broken.

"Eren... Eren... are you okay? Eren..." Karla said in a raspy sort of breath. Eren was too numb with the horror before him to really answer her. "Eren..." she cried softly, unable to feel he was still holding her hand. 

Slowly Eren realized his mother was calling for him. He made his way to her under the car, a searing pain in the arm that was holding his mother's hand. He came into view, and Karla cried harder as she looked at him. Half of his face was scrapped and bloody, and she couldn't move her arms to touch him.

"Oh, Eren. My poor baby. I'm sorry. I'm sorry." she cried. "I'd hug you if I could. I'd hold your hand if I could."

"But, mom, we are holding hands. We are, see?" With great pain Eren moved their interlocked hands in front of Karla. She cried even harder.

"Eren, I love you. I love you so much. Eren, you are my life, my pride  
and joy. Eren, I love you."

"I love you too, mommy." Eren said as he started to cry, afraid that his mom was going to die. Karla cried harder as she saw Eren break down. He hadn't cried for years, no matter what happened.

"Eren, I love you." Karla coughed and just the smallest of blood coated her bottom lip, but Eren saw it. He saw it all.

***

Eren woke up, his eyes flying open, breathing hard. He felt sweat run down his face as he sat up, burying his head in his hands. Tears leaked unwanted from his eyes, and his breathing got even raggedier.

"Dammit." He felt the tears come falling from his eyes, more and more as the image of his mother was seared into his brain. "DAMMIT." His breath became sobs he remembered the libertine circle of his happiness coming to an end, going back to the beginning when there was no happiness in the new unending circle.

He felt every last bit of pain wash upon him during the eight years since she had been gone. He felt himself retreating to the place where he knew the cycle would never be ruptured. He was beginning to forget that his circle had gotten wider, and he had found some happiness. 

Knock!

"Eren, don't forget that me and Mikasa are going out today. There's money on the table if you want to buy food, and we'll be back around seven tonight, alright?" Grisha said through the door. Eren calmed his breathing and pulled his head up out of his hands.

"Alright, dad. See you tonight." Eren said, his voice not betraying the turmoil he felt.

"See you, son." There was a pause when Eren had thought Grisha had left, but he was wrong. "I love you, Eren." Eren felt shock course through him. His father wasn't loving, and he most certainly didn't tell him he loved him, but Eren decided to let it go.

"Love you too." Eren said, and he heard the sound of his father's footsteps trailing away.

Eren looked around his dark room for his phone. He saw it on the book case next to his bed stand and reached over to get it. He successfully grabbed it without falling off the bed and saw it was ten. That gave him two hours before Armin would be over. Eren sighed and went about getting ready.

Once he had showered, he went about his room, straightening up here and there, but there was a panic just below the surface. It ate away at him and he looked over to his book case. He needed to calm the fuck down, and the perfect solution was behind the books.

*** 

At twelve o'clock exactly, Armin knocked on the Jäger family's door. He waited a few moments before Eren answered the door. 

"Hey, Armin. Glad you could make it." Eren said as he placed his hand on Armin's shoulder and pulled him inside the house.

"Hey, Eren." Armin said as Eren led him to his bedroom. Armin was close to Eren's side, his shoulders still wrapped up in Eren's arm, when he noticed Eren smelled weird. He vaguely smelled of his usually musky Old Spice scent, but the more over powering scent seemed to be weed. Armin tried to ignore it as Eren led him down a flight of stairs into what would be the basement of the house, but the minute Eren opened the door Armin knew something was wrong.

Eren's basement bedroom smelled strongly of weed and incense. Eren went in, pulling Armin along and closed the door. Armin looked around the room, taking in the dark blue walls, one being a white accent wall, the rows of lights in the ceiling that would light the room, two small windows high up on one wall, and Eren's bookcases. Armin immediately wanted to run his hands among the spines of the books, but right now he knew he needed to deal with Eren.

Eren was hooking up his Xbox to his TV and turning it on. He sat on the floor and patted the space next to him while he leaned back against his bed. Armin went and sat next to Eren, wondering how to bring up the problem. Eren handed Armin a controller and asked,

"Do you play K.O.F?" Armin nodded and Eren gave a lopsided grin. "Cool, for a sec I was worried that I'd have to try and find something else to do." Eren said as he selected Versus mode on the options screen.

They chose their characters and began to play; Armin was surprised Eren was playing so good since he was pretty sure he was high, considering the fact Eren giggled ever time one of his characters got hit. After a few rounds Armin decided he needed to start the conversation; it felt like he was ripping a bandage off.

"Eren, did you smoke weed?" Armin asked casually as the continued to play, hoping that this would end well.

"Yeah, want some?" Eren asked with a slight laugh in his voice. 'He's definitely high if he isn't denying it.' Armin thought as he sighed.

"Why did you do it?" Eren laughed as his character was tackled by Armin's.

"It's a great stress reliever. Helps me to forget shit when life's too much. You should try it sometime; it feels amazing."

"Eren," Armin said, pausing the game, "what was so bad you felt the need to get high? It's not a good idea to do drugs; it messes you up."

"Yeah, I already know that. I used to do harder stuff, but I vaguely realized I was doing stupid shit, so I stopped." Erezn said resting his head on Armin's shoulder as he stared up at his lights. "You know I love these lights. They're really pretty." Armin looked up at the lights and knew what Eren meant.

The ceiling lights were all round, embedded in the ceiling in a swirling pattern. It kind of reminded Armin of Starry Night as he looked at the pattern. The lights were off, but Armin could image how pretty they would look in the darkness- probably like stars.

"They are beautiful, Eren, but that's not what we're talking about. Why would you get high?" Armin asked as he stared at Eren's face on his shoulder. Eren blinked.

"To be alright with a nightmare. Do you ever see your mother dying right in front of you, coughing blood? It's a great way to induce stress." Eren asked, his voice as though he was talking about the weather. "That's why I decided to do this again. I forget that my circle got wider." Armin felt his eyes sting.

'Eren, I'm sorry.' Armin thought. 'I need to be there for you like the way Annie was there for me, don't I?' Armin felt tears fall slowly down his face as he looked down at Eren. It broke his heart to see someone who was probably more broken then he himself had been. But seeing this boy made him realize that he could help someone find happiness in this universe that didn't care about it's inhabitants and only wanted to be noticed.

"Hey," Eren said as he raised a hand to Armin's face, " don't cry. I don't even really cry about it anymore, so there's no reason you should." Eren wiped away a few of Armin's tears, and he only cried harder.

"Eren, stop trying to be so strong by yourself. Say you need help, and I'll be there for you. You don't need to struggle through the libertine circle alone; I'll help you." he said softly as Eren continued to look up at him. Eren nodded and moved his head up.

Eren raised his head, face still facing Armin. Armin continued to look into Eren's eyes, hoping that his words had gotten through to the high boy before him. Armin was so busy worrying about Eren's well being he didn't notice that Eren kept on getting closer and closer until Armin felt a shock run through him. Eren had gingerly placed his lips on Armin's, his hand still resting against Armin's cheek. 

It was a slow and meaningful kiss; Eren kissing gently while Armin froze, stunned by the turn of events. It was weird for him to have someone other than Annie kiss him. Eren's lips were fuller but more chapped, and he moved completely different from her. He was tilting his head to the side, occasionally sucking on Armin's bottom lip. 

Even after a minute, Armin still didn't move. He held his breath, completely unsure of what to do. Finally, much to his relief, Eren broke away and looked at Armin.

"Today I forgot that I had someone to help me and make my circle bigger. Armin, you're really amazing, you know. I want to stick by you for a long time." 

"Uh... I want to be with you to Eren, but um... you do know I'm with Annie right?" Armin said awkwardly as he blushed. Eren blinked and tilted his head.

"Yeah, you have a girlfriend. What about it?"

"You just kissed me rather ...erm... affectionately." Armin blushed even harder.

"So? We're still friends, right? Just because I kissed you doesn't really mean it has to mean anything to you right?" Eren said calmly as he got up from the floor. Armin stared gape mouthed at Eren.

"B-but Eren! You had to have had a reason for doing that. It must have meant something to you." Armin felt himself getting both flustered and annoyed.

"What does it matter if I like you? Come on, I'm really hungry. Let's go check out the fridge." Eren said as he grabbed Armin's hand and pulled him up. 

Armin followed, thoroughly confused about everything that had transpired so far.

***

When Armin left Eren's house at about five he knew he needed to talk to someone and clear his head; the only problem was who? Annie was out because she would try to murder Eren. Mikasa was out because he was pretty sure Eren didn't want her rooting around in his business. His grandfather was most definitely out; he'd hear the word weed and have a panic attack, then Armin would say another boy kissed him, and Grandpa Arlert would have a heart attack.

Armin banged his head against the steering wheel of his grandfather's Chrysler Plymouth.

"Who can I talk to?" Armin lamented as he sat in the parking lot of a seven eleven that was close by his house. Then it hit him. "Marco." Armin pulled out his cellphone and dialed Marco's number. It rang once before it was picked up by a joyful Marco.

"What's up, Armin? You hardly ever call."

"Can I come over? I need advice."

"Oh, sure. I'm always ready to help."

"No offense, but will Jean be over?" Armin asked, self conscious about having to ask Marco to make his boyfriend leave if he was over.

"Nope, he had to do something with his parents today, so it's just me and my sis, Ilse." Armin let out a sigh of relief.

"Okay. I'll be over in like five."

"See you then,"Marco said as he ended the call.

Armin was over in five minutes like he said, and he was welcomed in by Ilse. She was a beautiful girl of twenty- two who attended Shina college in the next town over.

"Hey, Armin. How have you been?" she asked with a warm smile as she walked upstairs with him. He  
returned her smile.

"Good. What about you. It's been a while since I last saw you." Ilse laughed, and it was a rich and filling thing.

"Good. College has been getting a little harder, but it's also been getting funner. I've met a nice guy, so maybe things will be picking up." she said with a wink as she went down to her bedroom.

Armin continued the opposite way and continued down the hall towards Marco's room. He reached the door and knocked. Marco immediately opened the door and welcomed Armin in. Armin sat on the bed while Marco pulled up the rolly desk chair, straddling it.

"So," Marco started as he rested his hands and chin on the top of the back of the chair," what's on your mind?" Armin let out a slow breath.

"I just came from Eren's house." Marco nodded. "And, well... don't judge him harshly but he was high." Armin cringed as the words left his mouth. "He sometimes uses it as a coping method but that's beside the point right now. Erenkissedmeandsaidhelikesme." Armin said in a rush, face blushing from the memory. Marco raised his eyebrows in surprise along with his eyes getting wide.

"Really? So is he gay then?" Marco asked.

"I don't know!? I mean, I guess if he kissed me, but how can he act like it was normal?" Armin said as he ran a hand through his bangs.

"Well, he was high. My understanding is you're pretty mellow when you're on that stuff. Jean told me." Marco added quickly when he saw the look Armin gave him.

"So that's why he acted like everything was casual? It was just because he was high?"

"Most likely. So what are you going to do about it?" Armin gave a look of total despair.

"I have no idea. I like him as a friend and I want to be there for him and help him. However, I definitely cannot let anything romantic happen between us because I'm with Annie. It also would affect her negatively if I was fooling around with Eren when I just told her I don't want to hurt her."

"Why did you tell her that?" Marco asked.

"Because ..." Armin trailed off in embarrassment when he realized the topic he had stumpled into. "She wants to have sex." Armin mumbled into his lap as he avoided eye contact with Marco. Marco once again raised his eyebrows in surprise.

"Are you going to?" Armin blushed beet red.

"Sometime, yes. Maybe soon." 

"Congratulations, Armin. The first time's always scary, but it will be bliss." Armin looked up and shook his head.

"That's not we should be talking about! What do I do about Eren?"

"Well, how did you feel about Eren kissing now that you've had time to absorb it? Did you like it? Did you kiss back?" 

"I didn't kiss back; I was too shocked to do anything. How I feel... it was weird getting kissed by someone other than Annie. It wasn't bad; I just don't know how to feel about it." Armin answered as he flopped back on the bed.

"You want to stay friends with Eren, right?" Armin nodded. "Then I suggest asking him if he remembers kissing you. If he doesn't drop it; he might not want you to know his secret. If he does, ask him what he meant by that. If he does tell you he likes you, tell him honestly you want to be just friends and you understand his feelings." Marco paused as he looked at Armin. "You do want to be just friends with him, right?"

"Yes. I'm committed to Annie. I love her and I think she's my soul mate. I don't want to lose her. Besides, I don't think I'm gay. I've never really thought about guys that way before." Armin sat back up and looked at Marco. Marco was nodding his head, and briefly Armin wondered if maybe he was bi.

"Well, there you have it then. Just remember not to lie to yourself. Be true to your heart, alright? Things change." Marco told Armin. Armin nodded.

"I'll always be true to myself. I learned a long time ago that I can't go around lying to myself."

***

Armin left Marco's house his resolve made up. He would confront both Eren and himself about today.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry. I've never been high. I asked wikia how how to be high, and I don't think I did it right.


	4. Your Big Daddy's got no Place to Stay

The rest of the weekend passed without Eren and Armin talking, mostly because Eren didn't give Armin his number, and Armin was too polite to stop by the Jäger household uninvited. Armin spent most of it trying to find a tactical way to bring up the kiss; whereas, Eren spent the weekend staring at his ceiling vaguely in awe by how awesome it felt to kiss Armin, but he was more worried about the way the universe seemed to be fucking with him. Eren had now, most likely, made it awkward between him and Armin, leaving him to worry that they would stop being friends.

***

Monday came and Armin was left feeling unsure about how to clear up the confusion. It needed to be dealt with so all parties involved would still be friendly, but his attempts ended up being a wash.

"Hey, Eren," Armin started shyly, "how was your weekend?" He saw Eren shrug.

"It was alright. Probably one of the first times my dad's ever told me he loves me." Armin eyes grew bigger.

"Really? That's good, Eren! So you have a better relationship with your father now?" Eren shrugged once again.

"I don't know. We've been rocky ever since my mom died. He's not great at being a dad. Plus, he didn't really seem to mourn my mom the way she should have been mourned." Eren said, his eyes distant. Armin noticed how Eren's posture had gotten more protective as he slouched in his chair and decided to drop the subject.

Armin and Eren sat in silence for the next twenty minutes as they worked on their art. The object was to paint a landscape, and so far, both of theirs were turning out good. Armin had decided to paint his one true love, the ocean; while Eren painted a meadow with a small brook running through it. This Armin found as a shock considering Eren never seemed to show much interest in nature but was painting something with a beauty that was ethereal.

"Do you like meadows?" Armin asked, his interest piqued.

"My mom did. This is what I remember from the time I went to Germany with her and my dad. She loved going to my dad's home country way more than her Turkish town because of this meadow she always wanted to see. According to my dad it was where they met for the first time. So, since she loved meadows I like meadows." Eren finished.

"That's beautiful, Eren. I had no idea you were Turkish. There's still so much to learn about you; it's kind of exciting." Armin said, his eyes bright with the prospect of more knowledge.

"We should talk more." He looked at Eren and he realized this was another opportunity to bring up the weekend.

"Yeah. I wanted to talk to you more on Sunday, but I don't have you're number so-" He was interrupted by a tan hand shoving a phone into his.

"Here put in your number." Eren said as he leaned back in his chair, watching Armin. He could feel a shiver run through him at the slightly haughty look in Eren's eyes. He diligently put his contact info on Eren's phone and handed it back. Their fingers briefly touched, and he felt embarrassment wash over him as he thought he saw the faintest of a blush form on Eren's cheeks. Moments later, he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He quickly checked the message.

Unknown Number:  
Now we cn txt all u want- Eren

Armin looked at Eren and saw him sneaking a brief glance at him. He smiled despite himself.

"Cool." Eren gave a half smirk.

"Yep. Now we can talk about the most randomest shit whenever." Eren said, a slight smile in his voice. The tone kind of made Armin's heart beat a little too fast for his liking.

"I can perpetually bore you with random stores and facts is what you mean." Armin said, slightly jokingly.

"I like random stores that involve sheep."

"Sheep?" Armin questioned, tilting his head to the side. This time he saw Eren's blush.

"Um... forget I said anything. Sheep have nothing to do with anything, so why are you talking about them you diptard?" Armin looked at him, completely lost.

"You're the one who mentioned sheep. Therefore, they must have to do with something." Armin said in a huff. "Butthead." He added as an afterthought. Eren cracked a grin and shook his head.

"It's fun to tease you. You get uppity and huffy so quick." Armin stared at him, mouth slightly open. "Close your mouth, or you're gonna catch flies." Eren gently pressed his hand to Armin's jaw, forcing his mouth close. "Seriously, forget about sheep. They have nothing to do with anything." Eren said just as the bell rang.

Eren got up from his chair, ruffled Armin's hair, and left the room. Armin stared at his retreating back, realizing Eren had basically flirted with him which brought up the topic of the kiss. Armin put his head down and covered it with his hands.

'I didn't get to bring up Saturday.' he thought miserably. 'He somehow managed to derail me.' Armin sighed and got up from his seat. He made his way to the door when a hand on his shoulder stopped him.

"Remember, Armin, what will be will be, what won't, won't be. Just go with the flow of things because the universe has a plan for you- whether you like it or not." His art teacher, Pixis, told him. Armin looked at him confusedly.

"Thank you for the advice, sir." Pixis gave a deep chuckle.

"Just think it over, Armin."

And, with that, Armin left art, thoroughly confused by his art teacher's sage yet strange words of advice.

***

Walking home was probably one of the worst things Eren had had to experience since meeting Armin. At the end of the day, both he and Mikasa began to walk home together, the normal slightly strained silence falling over them. It was like any other day, except Mikasa decided to start a conversation with Eren.

"You've been spending a lot of time with Armin." Mikasa said as an opening sentence. Eren cocked an eyebrow at her as he gave her a side long glance.

"Yeah."

"Is he a good friend?" Eren looked at her incredulously.

'What the fuck is that supposed to mean?"

"Does he treat you okay? Does he try and pressure you into things?" Eren felt anger boiling on his insides, wanting to burst forth like lava from a volcano as the pressure built.

"What kind of f*ing questions are those? You've met him before. Do you really think Armin's the type of person to do horrible shit like you're suggesting?! What the fuck?!" Mikasa's eyebrows knitted together.

"Eren, I'm just trying to make sure you're safe. I don't want you to get hurt again-" That was the final straw.

"Stop it! Just fucking stop! You need to stop interfering with my life just because we're siblings. I'm not a fucking child who can't look out for himself; I'm not your little duckling to look after! Plus there's no way you can stop me from getting hurt. It's going to fucking happen, get the fuck over it. 

"And you trying to force me the hell away from Armin sure isn't going to keep me from getting hurt either. It would just be worse. He is actually good for me! You're especially going to cause more pain for me since I fucking like him, Mikasa. I am on my way to being head over damn heels for him! So stay the fuck out of my friendship with him!" Eren finished, his eyes throwing sabers into Mikasa's.

Eren saw hurt flash across Mikasa's face, and he felt like a complete ass. Once again, he was causing her pain. He was fucking up her life when she just loved him; it made him feel sick to his stomach. He knew what she was trying to do, but he was sick of her being there every time he failed. He wanted her to be free from him; he wanted her to have a better life than the one she would attached to his hip. He had already fucked her up once-

"You like him, Eren? I didn't know you were interested in-"

"Of course you didn't. I haven't out right come out and told anybody that I'm not straight, not even bi, really. I'm like 80% gay and 20% straight. Alright? I haven't had time to parade it around."

"Did you realize when you met him?" Mikasa asked in a small voice.

"Yes." Was ll Eren said as he walked ahead of her and into their house, shutting himself in his room.

***

The next worse thing Eren had to endure was talking with his father at dinner. Mikasa had decided to spend the night at Sasha's, (Eren had no doubt in his mind it was because what he had said earlier) leaving Eren and his dad alone. This would have been all that bad in itself if Grisha hadn't had chose the one topic Eren never wanted to hear- seeing someone.

"Well, son," Grisha started as he cleared his throat, "I think this is as good a time as any." He paused. Eren furrowed his eyebrows.

"For what?" Eren asked, somehow hoping this was not the sex talk.

"I'm seeing another woman." Eren almost flipped his shit right then and there. That was the most asinine thing he had ever heard come out of his father's mouth.

"What do you mean you're 'seeing another woman'?" Eren asked, his tone barely covering up the anger he felt.

"Exactly what I said, Eren. She's a rather nice woman."

"How could you!?" Grisha raised his eyebrow.

"Eren?"

"How can you look for someone else? How can you turn your back on mom?!"

"Eren, that's not what I'm doing-"

"Yes it is! You're trying to find someone else. How is that not turning your back on her?!" Grisha's brow furrowed together, and his mouth became a thin line.

"Eren, I love your mother. It's just I want someone who will be with me after you guys have left to live your own lives. I want-"

"Why does it have to be a woman? Why can't you just go to fucking bingo like ever other old person? Besides, you would ignore her the same way you ignored mom."

"Eren! Watch your language. You don't talk to me that way."

"Why are you picking up on 'fuck' but not on the fact I said you ignored mom?"

"Eren," Grisha said, his voice threateningly low, "I loved your mother. Do not try and say I didn't." Eren snorted.

"Really? Work always came first to you."

"Eren-"

"You know it's true!"

"I loved her, Eren. You have no idea what you're talking about. You have no knowledge to support that claim!"

"Ex-fucking-actly! You loved her! You haven't been saying you love her; it's always been the past tense-"

"EREN! ENOUGH OF THIS!"

"NO! HOW DARE YOU FORGET HER AND SHOVE HER TO THE BACKGROUND! SHE'S SUPPOSED TO BE THE MOST IMPORTANT THING TO YOU! SHE WAS YOUR FUCKING SOUL MATE, AND NOW YOU'RE JUST CHUCKING HER OUT THE WINDOW!"

"THAT IS BULLSHIT! KARLA WAS MY EVERYTHING!"

"SHE SHOULD STILL BE YOUR EVERYTHING!"

"YOU DON'T KNOW HOW I FEEL, EREN!"

"YOU OBVIOUSLY DON'T KNOW HOW I FEEL EITHER IF YOU THINK I WOULD BE OKAY WITH THIS! YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW MUCH SHE MEANS TO ME IF YOU THINK I WOULD ACCEPT YOU WITH ANY OTHER WOMAN!" Eren screamed, his chest heaving.

Grisha and Eren glared at each other, both standing. He noticed his father looked ready to punch him, but he could care less. He was so disgusted by Grisha that he could barely look at him. Eren turned around and walked out of the kitchen, picking up his backpack from the floor in the living room.

"Where do you think you're going, young man?" Grisha asked angrily as he followed Eren.

"Some place where I don't have to see you." Eren told him with the slam of the front door punctuating his sentence.

***

Eren walked a few blocks away from his house; the cold mid-autumn wind nipping at his face. When he reached a little alleyway, he slid down against one of the walls, rubbing his palms into his eyes.

'Fuck.' he thought. 'This wasn't how it was supposed to go. This whole day sucks. I hurt Mikasa; I hurt my dad. I'm a fucking monster.' Eren leaned his head back against the wall and stared up at the sky. 'What the hell do I do now? I can't stay outside; some fuck will try to rob and rape me. I don't have any cash. All I've got is my phone and my damn backpack. That's not going to help me.' Eren tilted his head back down and held it in his hands. 'There has to be some solution.' Eren was trying to solve his dilemma when a face drifted into his thoughts. 'Armin.' He sighed. 'I could ask him; he said he wanted to help me. This day is turning out to be even suckier. Now I have to ask my crush to put up with even more of my shit.' Eren thought angrily as he pulled ouy his phone. 

He went to contacts and saw Armin's name. He clicked the call button and put it to his ear. He heard the dial tone.

*** 

Armin jumped when Radio GaGa blared from his phone speakers. He looked at the phone and saw 'Eren' on the call screen. He looked quizzically at the screen before answering.

"Hello?

"Hey, Armin. I was wondering if I could come over right now?" Eren's voice was muffled with static and slightly anxious. Armin looked at his clock. It read 6:50 p.m. His grandfather wouldn't be home for another forty minutes, so he didn't really need to ask permission.

"Sure. I live on Shiganshina avenue 845."

"Okay. I'll be there soon."

"See you when you get here." Armin said, and he heard the click of the phone hanging up. He sighed and spinned around in his desk chair. "I wonder what's up." he said aloud. "I hope Eren's okay ... I hope we can talk about the weekend." 

***

Eren was only a few blocks away from Armin's house, so it only took him around five minutes to reach it. He walked up the quiet lane and could only think how much this neighborhood seemed to fit Armin. It was part of the older sections of the town with traditional German style housing which gave it a sort if quaint quality. Even though it was night, he could tell it was a quiet place; that fit his mental image of Armin so well. He always pictured him in a quiet place, doing work, and lazying around in the yard, finding bugs to observe, and watching the clouds drift across the sky.

He came up to 845 and saw that it was like many other houses on the block except it had the wood was painted a sky blue that seemed to mimic the color of both the sky and Armin's eyes. He swallowed thickly as he walked up the walkway, nervous at meeting Armin's grandfather. He tried to smooth the rat's nest on his head, but like always it wouldn't listen and left itself looking messier than before. He sighed and rang the doorbell, expecting an elderly old man to open the door. When Armin opened the door though, Eren was not sure if he was relieved or more nervous.

The blonde was wearing a hug baggie sweater, the same pair of fitted jeans he had worn earlier, and his feet were bare.'He looks damn desirable in that.' Eren thought embarrassedly as he took in the picture of the smaller boy before him. He noticed Armin stepped aside and made a motion of enter.

"Come on in. Grandpa isn't home yet, so it will just be the two of us." Armin told him as he apprehensively entered the home.

Eren immediately zeroed in on the picture of Armin's parents as he did a brief glance around the room. It wasn't all that hard for Eren to do that though. He always looked atop in high places in house's living rooms to see if there were any treasured pictures. He knew four out of five times that the deceased held a special spot in certain places, like it was an unspoken rule that their pictures go there. He noticed Armin started walking out of the living room and to another part if the house, so he couldn't get a good look at the picture, but he saw a woman that seemed to strongly resemble Armin.

"Come on, Eren. We can go hang out in my room. Then if you're still here when grandpa gets home, you can meet him." Armin told him as they walked down a hallway towards the back of the house. Briefly, Eren took in more photos that hung in the hall, always picking out the woman Armin seemed to resemble.

They reached a door next to the back door, and Armin opened it. He stepped inside after Eren and closed the door. Eren turned around to talk to Armin when he was taken in by the most beautiful mural he had yet seen. It took up the wall with the door and it was huge.

It was a picture of the ocean and beach, during what appeared to be midday. The sun was high in the sky, a mere glint that was partially concealed by a single wispy cloud with other clouds drifting across the horizon lazily. The ocean was a deep rich blue, much darker than Armin's eyes and the sky farther from the view point, but a lighter ocean green, similar to his eyes, at the forefront. But the most stunning thing about the mural was that it somehow manage to incorporate the doorknob in the paint without it interrupting the scene. It was painted and shaped to look like a shell, round and slightly pinkish orange.

Eren looked at the other walls and saw they were painted white. He guessed this was to make sure nothing was taken away from the mural. He noticed Armin looking at him, a slight smile on his face and he felt the need to tell Armin how amazing the mural was.

"That's really beautiful. Who did it?" he asked. Armin turned to look at the wall and Eren couldn't help noticing the slightly melancholy smile that took hold of Armin's lips.

"It was my mother. She loved the ocean, along with my father. They were both fanatical about it, so when they had me they had to have a painting of the ocean in my room. My mother painted it before she got pregnant since they did a planned pregnancy sort of thing. She wanted to paint it before she got pregnant, so it wouldn't get in the way of her vision." Armin told Eren as he walked to his desk and sat down. He looked Eren in the eye and gave a small smile. "That's enough about me. What do you need?" Armin asked him, changing subjects. Eren sighed and plopped down on Armin's bed. This was going to be hard.

"I need a place to stay for the night." Eren spewed out in one breath. Armin's eyes widened in alarm.

"Is everything okay?!" Armin asked, a slight panic in his voice. Hearing that gave Eren a little flutter in his languidly beating heart that was forming in his chest every time he was with Armin.

"No. Today just sucked. First Mikasa rides my ass about stuff, and I get upset with her even though I know it's because she cares. Then I go home and eat dinner with my dad alone since Mikasa didn't want to be at home. This is when the the day hits the fucking climax; my dad's seeing another woman. What the hell?" Eren took a pause as he rubbed his eyes with the palms of his hands. "Really? How is that acceptable? He didn't pay enough attention to mom; he didn't mourn her enough, and now he thinks he can just have some other woman replace her? What the fuck? Aren't man and wife supposed to love each other forever?!" Eren slumped over, his palms still pressed to his eyes, his elbows resting on his thighs.

"Your dad wants to start dating again?" Armin asked softly. Eren nodded his head.

"I don't get it. He doesn't know how to be caring; all he's ever thought about was work. He wouldn't have even been at mom's deathbed if we hadn't had been taken to his hospital. He never took a day off. Never. Not once. Even when mom got pneumonia one time, he just went to work and left her alone. So where does that bastard get off thinking he can have another woman!? Does he think he gets another chance and treats her better than mom!? That's fucked up then! He should have treated mom better! He doesn't get a do over to treat some other woman better!" Eren heard Armin scoot his rolly chair over.

"Eren, maybe your father's lonely. From what you've said it doesn't seem like he's close to either you or Mikasa, so maybe he wants someone he can have a bond with since the one person he used to have it with is gone."

"If he wants company why not get a damn dog? It's man's best friend." Eren said in a quiet voice.

"Eren that's not a good substitute for an actual person. You can't talk with a dog. You can't take a dog to dinner. You can't go out with the dog unless it's a seeing eye dog. I think your father just wants human company."

"Then why the hell not make some friends! There's alternatives to a woman!" Eren felt a hand on his knee.

"Eren… why are you so opposed to this? I think you father just wants to feel less alone. That's human nature. People search for others so they feel less alone in life; it helps to give them.purpose. Maybe he's trying to rupture the pattern of his own cycle. Another lover hits the universe and the circle is broken."

"It's not fair to mom! She loved him! She was wholeheartedly devoted to him! He was the last person she mentioned before she died! It's not fair to her to have him not be as devoted to her as she was to him! She deserves better than that; especially now that she's dead. The dead make the heaviest demands." Eren said as he finally looked into Armin's blue eyes. Armin stared back at him, his brow knitted.

"I know what you mean, Eren, even though I've never been through something like this before. You think that he's tarnishing her memory by going out with someone else." Armin grabbed his hand, and Eren's heart sped up a little. "But, there will never be another woman like your mother. I'm sure she was one of a kind like you are. Maybe the woman he's seeing now is completely different from the way your mother was. If that's the case, he isn't trying to replace her. It implies he knows no one will ever be like your mother, so he's looking for someone to keep him company; someone different from your mother because he doesn't want someone who's kind of like her. He doesn't want to replace her. Could you be okay with that if it was the case?" Armin asked tilting his head to the side. As Eren looked into those powder blue eyes, he knew there was so much logic and wisdom in those words. Eren barely nodded his head before he rested his forehead on Armin's shoulder.

"I guess I could be okay with that. It still feels wrong to me, but so long as she doesn't try to be like mom, I suppose it's alright." Eren said wearily. He felt Armin raise his hand and gingerly stroke his hair.

"Good. I don't think your father was trying to hurt you. I think he's just lonely. Maybe you should try to bond with him more since you said that you hurt him; that means you care if you see what you did, and it bothered you." Armin told him as he continued to comfort Eren by stroking his hair. Eren let out a sigh and turned to the side to look up at Armin.

"I guess you're right. Maybe I should bond with him; I just don't know where to start." Eren let out another sigh.

"Just try talking about school first and see where that-" Armin was interrupted by the front door.

"Armin, I'm home!" Grandpa Arlert shouted up the stairs. Armin jumped, and Eren raised his head quickly from Armin's shoulder.

"Hey, Grandpa!" Armin called from his room. He turned to face Eren.

"I'll be right back okay? I'm going to go ask Grandpa about you staying the night." Armin said as he got up from his chair. Eren nodded and swallowed thickly as Armin left the room.

'Fuck. He's too damn good for someone like me.'

***

"There's my boy! How are you doing, Armin? Ready to help me with making dinner?" Grandpa Arlert said as he placed his coat on a kitchen chair. Armin nodded and went to the cupboard to get out a box of Hamburger Helper. They began to cook in silence until Armin found his voice.

"Hey, Grandpa, would it be okay if I had a friend over for dinner?" he asked nervously, his thoughts all focused on the anxious boy in his room.

"Why sure! That sounds like a spanken idea. Is it Jean, or Marco?" Grandpa Arlert asked kindly.

"Uh… actually it's a new friend, Eren."

"Really? I didn't think I'd get to meet him so soon. When is he coming over?" Armin swallowed thickly.

"He's already here. He's in my room."

"Ah, well go get him and telling to stop being so shy and make himself at home." Grandpa Arlert said as he gave Armin's shoulder a pat.

"I will, but… Grandpa, could he also stay the night?" Armin asked in a nervous, slightly pitched voice.

"I guess there's no problem with that, but is there a reason for you just dropping all of this suddenly?" Grandpa Arlert asked calmly.

"Well… Eren is having some problems at home right now. He and his dad got into a fight, and he just feels kind of betrayed by his father. It was about a very upsetting change; Eren just doesn't feel ready for his dad to date someone else even though his mom has been gone for a while now." Armin said nervously as he looked at his grandfather. To his immense relief, he smiled.

"His mother died?" Armin nodded as his grandfather patted his back. "I understand. Tell him he can stay as long and whenever he likes; the Arlerts are here to help him." His grandfather smiled gently down at him.

"Thanks Grandpa." Armin said with a watery and relieved smile.

***

Dinner with the Arlerts was like nothing Eren had experienced before. There was such warm tight bond between the two that made Eren have a pang of longing for his mother. It was nice cozy atmosphere like those family sitcoms where everything is perfect. It made Eren feel out of place, but he liked it. It seemed to fit Armin and his grandfather, and he wanted Armin to be happy.

"You know you two have a nice vibe going on." Eren said as him and Armin sat in Armin's room, just before they were to get ready for bed.

"Hmm?" Armin asked as he pulled out the trundle on his bed so Eren would have some place to sleep.

"You and your grandpa. It was really cozy and homey."

"Oh. I suppose it is since we're the only family each other has. Well, family that lives together. I have an uncle, but he's from my mom's side and lives by himself." Armin said as he got out extra blankets to put on the bed.

"That must be nice. I haven't had a bond like that since my mom died." Eren told Armin as he sat in his desk chair. He saw Armin look over his shoulder at him.

"What about Mikasa? You two seemed pretty close." Eren sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

"Not really. After a few years ago everything between us is kinda strained. We weren't close to begin with but things just went down the crapper. She seems to think I'm like a fragile flower that needs to be protected 24/7. It gets on my nerves because I'm sick of her being attached to my hip. She would have such a better life if she wasn't with me."

"Is that what happened today?" Armin asked quietly, turning to face Eren. "You said you hurt Mikasa; did you get into a fight about her being over protective?"

"You're really damn perceptive, Armin." Eren slouched in the desk chair and ran another hand through his hair, making it messier than before. "Yeah. I got pissed off with her for trying to protect me from getting hurt. I guess it would have happened if it wasn't you she was asking about." Eren saw Armin's enamel blue eyes widened.

"Me?" he asked surprised with anxiety creeping into his tone.

"Yes." Eren sighed. "She thought you might hurt me, and that insinuation pissed me off. She really has no idea what the hell she's talking about. You're good for me. You're actually helping me. I feel happier with you around, and I told her that. You don't have to worry about it though. I made sure she knew you're not a threat." Eren watched Armin's brow furrow and him start to worry his bottom lip. "Armin?" Eren asked slightly worried.

"D…do … do you remember Saturday?" Armin asked quietly, and Eren's eyes widened. 'Oh fuck. Here comes the talk about kissing him.' Eren thought slightly panicked. 'Well, grit your teeth and be blunt Jäger. Tell him straight out you expect nothing from him even though you like him.'

"Yeah. You want to talk about the kiss, right?" Armin's eyes widened in surprise at Eren's straight forwardness.

"Yes," Armin answered meekly as a slight blush covered his cheeks.

"Don't worry about it. It won't happen again. It was a moment of weakness because I was high. I don't expect you to return my feelings, and I don't expect anything back from you, so you can let it go." Eren told Armin as he looked straight into those sky blue orbs. "I'm sorry." he added as an afterthought. Armin shook his head.

"It's okay, Eren. I was surprised, but it doesn't really disgust me. If you're gay, I'm one hundred percent okay with that." Eren felt a sense of relief and happiness rush through him. He had managed to keep Armin his friend. That was all that had really mattered to him, and he was happy.

"Cool." Eren said with a genuine smile.  
Armin smiled back.

"Eren, what are you going to do about your dad and Mikasa?" Eren smiled deflated and he sighed again.

"I don't know. Do you have any suggestions?" Armin worried his lip thoughtfully as he looked at Eren.

"You're bad at expressing yourself, I think, in ways that aren't random burst of passion. Maybe you could tell them you're going to try and fix that- but only if you want to!" Armin said slightly panicky as he waved his hands in front of him. Eren laughed. 

"It's okay, Armin, you didn't offend me. You're right. I'm suck at expressing myself. I guess I should change it." Eren said. Armin seemed to deflate with relief at not offending him.

"It would be a goog place to start since you have your heart in the right place, Eren. You just don't know how to tell people it there." Armin said with a soft smile, and Eren's newborn heart beat a little faster.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all are enjoying this fanfic. This quickly turning to be my longest fanfic and probably one of my best. I want to thank you guys for reading and please feel free to comment and give me feed!
> 
> Luv ya guys!


	5. Bad Communication

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lots of feels. Eren and his family make up; Armin and Eren both get a surprise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So addressing the name for series... it's named after the underground where Levi comes from in the manga. It's a really lame name, but I liked the way it sounded and it stuck. I know it sounds lame, but doesn't it sound like a place full of action and mystery? No? Ok...
> 
> Also homophobic slurrs in this chapter and brief depiction of violence.

So the next day at school, Eren and Armin walked together. It was highly pleasurable for the both of them; each enjoying the company of the other. Eren found it quiet nice despite the fact he wished he could have held hands with the smaller boy, but he satisfied himself with the pleasant chatter and smile of the blonde. Armin also found it nice, noticing how his heart seemed to beat a little too fast whenever the messy haired boy's eyes found his.

For the first time that year, Armin got to spend all of the breaks at school with Eren. Annie was at home sick that day, and Armin knew that Eren was still skittish about seeing Mikasa. Therefore, he decided to spend the breaks with the bad attitude kid, helping him get his mind off of things.

"You know, sheep are really cute." Armin said offhandedly, watching for Eren's reaction from the corner of his eye. He saw Eren's jaw clench the slightest bit and he smiled.on the inside. He was pretty sure Eren liked sheep; he was just waiting for Eren to admit it.

"Yeah, I guess," Eren replied, cracking a knuckle. Armin took out his phone and typed something in while Eren was busy going through both of his hands, cracking his knuckles.

"Yep. I really like sheep. Aren't they just adorable?" Armin asked as he shoved his phone in Eren's face. He saw Eren's eyes soften just the slightest amount as he looked at the sheep, then promptly turned away a slight blush on his cheeks.

"You're an asshole." Armin gave a mischievous grin.

"What do you mean? I was just showing you how much I like sheep; do you have a problem with that?"

"Why the hell would I?" Eren asked defiantly.

"I don't know; you tell me." 

"I like sheep." Eren mumbled under his breath.

"Hmm? What was that? I didn't hear you." Armin said as he leaned his ear closer, full well hearing what he said the first time.

"You really are a dick, you know that?" Eren asked annoyed. Armin giggled, and it was sweet and rich.

"Eren, it's okay to say you like sheep. Are you afraid of ruining your bad boy persona?" 

"Like hell I am." Eren grumbled.

"Good, because it's ruined. You're just too cute for it sometimes."

"Eren Jäger is cute? Like hell I am! That's you!" Eren said as he turned to face Armin. It was a sharp sudden turn that resulted in Armin and Eren with only an inch between them. Armin felt his heart rush on a head beating like there was no tomorrow; he saw Eren's breath hitch as the teal eyes meet his powder blue then looked down at his fullish pink lips. He just about heard Eren swallow, watching his adam's apple bob before he lifted his gaze to Eren's lips.

He swallowed, his heart beating ever faster. He looked back into the teal orbs and saw longing in those eyes, leaving him with a need to sate the feelings being conveyed through those eyes. His and Eren's eyes locked on one another, and he could feel Eren's breath coming closer, falling on the skin above his lip. He remained unmoving, keeping his eyes locked with Eren's. He felt a sense of excitement building in his gut just as the bell rang.

It was a loud resounding ring that startled Armin. He jumped away from Eren, the trance broken. He made one final look at Eren before the teal eyes turned away, and Eren proceeded to raise. He saw a tan hand extend to him, and he looked up.

"I'll help you up." Eren said, a sort of dead pan taking over the most expressive face he'd ever seen. Armin shook his head.

"It's fine. I can get up by myself." Armin said as he lifted himself from the floor. He stood beside Eren, and he couldn't help noticing together difference in height between them. "I'll text you later." Armin said with a slight smile and wave as he made his way to class, his heart a flutter. Eren waved back and turned away from Armin, making his own way to class.

***

The rest of the day passed with Eren continuously thinking about what might had happened at lunch. Over and over again, he replayed the moment in his head. He was stuck in a unbroken cycle of powder blue and fleshy pink that sent a shock to his languid heart. That is until the final bell tolled.

With a heavy and nervous conscious, Eren made his way to Mikasa's classroom to pick her up. He had spent the whole day avoiding her, but he knew he needed to make it up to her. He knew he needed to tell her once and for all everything he had been holding back since the day he broke her.

He leaned against the brick wall of her sixth period in the cool mid-November day, appearing nonchalant. He kept his hands tucked into the pockets of his leather jacket, with one leg bent and propped against the wall, foot flat and flush against it. Finally, the door swung open and out walked Mikasa, her dead pan eyes widening when her grey eyes met his.

"Eren?" she questioned in a soft barely audible whisper. He locked eyes with her and tilted his head in a signal of 'let's go'. She paused for a second, an unusual sense of indecision and worry in her body. She stared back into his eyes then began to move, tucking her chin to her collar and going to pull up her scarf until she realized she wasn't wearing it. Eren saw her straighten her posture and join him; he smiled to himself inwardly. 'At least it'll be a little raiser to apologize if she isn't wearing her scarf.' he thought to himself as they set off towards home.

Throughout the walk Eren noticed Mikasa absent mindedly reach towards her neck, never finding what she was looking for. Half way home, Eren pulled his backpack off and opened it. Mikasa stopped and watched him, slight puzzlement visible in her dull grey eyes. She continued to watch as Eren drew out a long red knitted piece of material. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw her eyes light up when she realized what he had.

"It's too cold to start walking around without it, Mikasa." Eren said as he reached up and wrapped the scarf around her neck like he did when he first gave it to her. "It's warm, isn't?" he asked as he began to walk ahead. He noticed Mikasa follow, her chin tucked into the warm soft fabric.

When they got home, Eren unlocked the door and let Mikasa go first. He followed behind her and locked the door, leaving his backpack against the wall in the living room.

"Mikasa," he started, "we need to talk." Mikasa stopped and turned around. She gave a curt nod, put her backpack down, and sat on the brown leather couch. Eren sat down next to her, his body tilted towards hers as he leaned into the couch. He sighed and began.

"I know I was a dick yesterday, and I'm sorry, but we can't do this anymore. This relationship isn't healthy for either of us."

"What do you mean, Eren?" Mikasa interjected quickly, a slight edge of panic on her voice.

"You being so overprotective of me and me basically raping your goodwill. We're suffocating each other. You're attached to my hip and think I'm like a child who can't do anything. I lead you on and lash out at you. Can't you see how stupid this cycle is?" Eren asked, his brow knitted together. Mikasa quickly shook her head.

"Eren, I love you; it doesn't matter to me that-"

"That's the problem! You love me! Can't you see how much you're hurting yourself by doing this? Can't you see how much it hurts me? You're there every step of the way as I fuck up my life. You see every single damn moment, and I'm tired of it.

"I'm a screw up, and you see it all. You see how stupid I am, how much of an ass I am, how broken I am, and all you do is love me. It kills me because I don't deserve it. You don't deserve to spend the rest of your life attached to someone like me. There's something so much better out there for you! Why can't you just leave me?!" Eren ended angrily as he looked into Mikasa's eyes. He saw her swallow thickly and her brow scrunch in pain.

"Eren," she said softly. "I can't leave you. I... I love you. You're my family, but you taught me how to live again. I just can't turn my back on you. You are the thing that keeps my life going. I would be lost without you. And even though you say that you're a screw up, I don't see you that way. You're strong and brave, Eren." Mikasa gently placed her hand on top of Eren's. He felt his brow knit closer together.

"No I am not. I'm a punk ass kid who doesn't know how to stop making bad decisions. You need to realize that, and no matter how much you turn away, it's the truth. There's a better life for you than this."

"Eren," Mikasa said, sternness in her voice, "I won't ever turn my back on you. You're my world, and there's nothing that would make me happier than to be with you. That's the best life I can image." Eren let out a frustrated growl and grabbed Mikasa's shoulders.

"Do you remember what the hell I did to you in freshman year? Hell, do you remember what the fuck we did in September? That is not what you need. None of that is ever going to make you happy. I don't love you like that, and I never will. I am falling for Armin, and he is the thing I'm most serious about. He's there for me now, so you don't need to watch me 24/7; you can have your own life that's separate from me. That's what I want for you. I want you to find someone who's going to love you properly and treat you the way you deserve- don't interrupt," Eren said annoyedly as Mikasa opened her mouth with a look of displeasure, "I'm not saying we have to completely stop talking to each other; we just can't be like before. We can still be friends and siblings, but that's all it will ever be with us. Okay?" Eren asked, his teal eyes boring into Mikasa's for some sort of reaction.

"Eren... okay." she sighed defeatedly. "We'll just be siblings, and I'll back off, but when did you change so much? I was always watching so when did this happen?" Mikasa asked, a hint of sadness in her voice. Eren let go of her shoulders and leaned back into the couch.

"It happened when you couldn't be there to watched. It happened during art." Eren answered as he stared at the ceiling. 

"It was because of Armin, wasn't it?" she asked quietly. Eren felt a slight tug at the corners of his mouth a twitter of his heart.

"Yep. It all happened while I was with him." Eren tilted his head back down to look at Mikasa and was surprised to see her leaning closer. She wrapped Eren in her tight hug, burying her face in his chest. He welcomed her warmth until he felt the wetness seeping into his shirt. "Mikasa?"

"I'm glad, Eren. You've finally let go of the pain. You're growing and healing in ways that I couldn't help you to. I'm happy you have Armin; he's making you a better person. I'm happy for yo-u." Her voice broke slightly at the end. "Eren," she sobbed, " you deserve this. I hope you win Armin over." Eren felt his new found heart break a little with her words. He knew he needed to break her heart so they could both move on from the lie they were living, but it hurt like hell.

He hugged her back every bit as hard she hugged him and buried his face in her hair. No matter what he decided, he was going to help her find happiness and not hurt her anymore than necessary. He was going to turn over a new leaf, and this would be the first thing he did: make the people he love happy and make them stop worrying about him.

"Eren," Mikasa whispered, "I love you." It came in a shuttery breath that Eren almost missed.

"I love you too, sis," Eren whispered into her hair as he held her tighter. "Somethings once you've loved them becomes yours forever. If you let them go, they only circle back and become a part of you. They define you, or they destroy you. You are going to be something that defines me. I will be know as a better person because of you, Mika." Eren whispered softly, feeling tears soak into his shirt faster. He noticed Mikasa's shoulders shake slightly and could only hold onto her, but even doing that he knew wouldn't ease her pain. She had to give up her love that she had lived off for so long, and he knew it wouldn't be easy for her.

They stayed like that for a long while until Eren noticed Mikasa had drifted off to sleep. He saw her slightly furrowed brow and felt bad but knew he needed to let it happen. It was what was needed for both of them. He gently picked her up and took her to her bedroom, laying her on her bed and tucking her in. He stared down at her for a moment, saying goodbye to their previous relationship before planting a small kiss in her hair. He saw her expression become more peaceful, but he didn't miss the small whimper that followed as he left her room.

He went to his own bedroom, down the stairs in the basement, and lied back on his bed. He thought about how his life was starting to change. He was finally putting an effort into living again, something he thought he wouldn't do again since his mother had left. He was going in the right direction, cleaning up his life, and he had only one person to thank for that.

He felt a smirk twitch at the corner of his lips as blonde hair drifted in front of his now closed eyes. He saw pale skin and enamel blue eyes moving to the forefront of his vision, and he could help it as the smirk became a smile. His whole life had been a cycle of some kind of hurt, but now it was finally looking up. His circle was broken, his world made wider, and it was all thanks to this secret lover of his languid heart.

'Another love hits the universe and the circle is broken. But with Death comes Rebirth. Like all lovers and sad people I am a poet.' Eren thought as Armin's sweet smile burned in his mind's eye. 'That's a pretty morbid quote for me to think in this moment. I guess it's the old lover I used to be that hit the universe, died, and has led to rebirth. I hope that this rebirth will be what I've been waiting for.' Eren let out a sigh at his thoughts, Armin's form never leaving his sight.

He continued to lay upon his bed , lost in thoughts of Armin until the piercing ring of his phone disturbed his thoughts. He opened his eyes, wide a the unpleasant and unexpected interruption. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone as the last twinges of Bohemian Rhapsody flitted across his room. His brow knitted together in annoyance, wondering who the hell it could be that was intruding upon his solitude. However, when he saw the caller I'd his eyes softened, and the smile returned.

Mein lieber: How are you? Have you talked with Mikasa yet?

'Damn, Armin is too caring.' Eren thought as he sent back a reply.

Eren: Yep. We've worked things out so we're on the same page. Now I just need to talk to Dad; which will be a big pain in the ass :(

Eren put the phone down on his stomach and continued to look at his ceiling, remembering how Armin had agreed that his lights were beautiful. The lights had always been the favorite part of his room, one of the only things that seemed free and wonderful in his life after his mother had left him behind. He heard Freddie Mercury's voice flit through the room again and looked at Armin's reply.

Mein Lieber: I don't think it will be quite that hard. Just tell him how you really feel, and things should work out. Good luck, Eren. P.S. Grandpa said you can come over whenever you need to. He understands how hard it can be for someone to lose their loved ones.

Eren smiled at Armin's reply and couldn't help but feel excited at the flutter his heart made at the idea he was welcomed in the Arlert's home.

Eren: Thx, it's nice to know I have a place to go when things get to be too much. ;)

As soon as he sent, Eren regretted it. 'A winky face, Jäger? Really? How fucking suggestive can you be?' Eren face palmed, hating how his new found heart seemed to like to embarrass him. Much to his surprise, Armin replied back almost instantly, bringing his heart to a thunderous new pace that it wasn't accustomed to.

Mein Lieber: No problem ;D

'He used a damn emotioncon. A fucking emoji.' Eren felt his face flush as he stared at his screen, total disbelief apparent. 'He used a winky face. Goddamn, he's playing with me without even knowing.' Eren brought his hands up to his face, hiding his blush and smile from the room.

He sat like that for several minutes until he heard the front door open and close, signaling his father was most likely home. He pulled his hands away, his face losing its blush in minutes. 'Fuck. Now I have to go talk to him.' Eren thought as his stomach began to turn with nervousness that comes from years of hiding. 'I need to tell him how I feel about his and mom's relationship ... that's not going to be fun.' Eren let out a steadying breath and lifted himself from the bed. He ran a hand through his messy hair, leaving behind more upturned and moussed pieces than before. 

He opened his door and closed it gently, trying to keep his hands steady and without sweat. He walked up the steps, his footfalls, albeit soft, seemed to echo through the staircase leading to the ground level.

He reached the ground level, coming up next to the door to the kitchen, his heart hammering. He pushed through the kitchen door and found his father sitting at the old kitchen table, apparently a house warming gift to Grisha and Karla from Grisha's parents. His father looked up at him at the swish of the kitchen door, a cold glanced followed by a head nod as he took a sip of his coffee and continued to read the paper.

Eren swallowed, his throat seeming to constrict as he faced his father, the tension seeping into the room and encompassing them wholly.

"Dad, we need to talk." Eren said, his voice going hoarse as his father looked at him.

"I agree that we do indeed need to talk, so what is it that you have to say?" Grisha asked as he motioned for Eren to take the seat across from him. Eren swallowed again and let out a deep breath, trying to calm his rapidly increasing heartbeat.

"I'm sorry for what I said yesterday. I shouldn't have done that, but I don't like the idea of another woman coming in to my life or your life  
to take Mom's place. She was the most my precious thing to me before she was gone, and she still is. I don't want some woman waltzing in and taking over her place and memory in this house." Eren said in a rush of breath, looking down at the table while his hands nervously grabbed at his pant legs. Eren heard his father sigh and briefly looked up. What he saw surprised him.

Grisha looked at him with a tenderness and a sorrow Eren thought he could never possess. His face had finally lost the mask that had been in place for so many years, build layer upon late from working as a doctor. Eren looked back into the eyes the same color as his and saw his father had his own pain and hurt that had been kept so secretive from him and Mikasa. With the mask gone and the feelings evident, it seemed as though his father had aged ten years.

"Eren, I understand that you love your mother greatly; I get that you want her to be the only one who is your mother, but I don't understand how you could have said I didn't love her. Karla was my world, my everything, and she was the thing most precious to me. I don't want to replace her or get rid of her memory." Grisha said, his voice pale and dry, emotion pooling instead in his teal eyes that Eren had inherited.

"All I ever saw of you was the occasional trip home from work." Eren answered as he stared at the stained oak surface of the table. "I never saw you with her; all I ever saw was her by herself, being quietly proud of you and loving you. I never saw you return the sentiment. I never saw you care for her. Even when she died I didn't see you cry. I didn't see you shed a single damn tear for her or show any sign of sorrow on your face. What the hell was I supposed to think?" Eren asked, his voice carefully metered so as not to show the hostility burning under the surface.

He glanced back up at his father and saw him sitting with his hands steepled together in front of his face, a rueful smile on his lips.

"You're a 100% correct, Eren. I never did seem to show you how much I loved Karla. All I ever seemed to do was work and work. But I was devastated when she died, Eren. I had just hid it so well behind the mask I've created over the years you never would have know.

"Her death did break me on the inside, Eren. I was heart broken that I had lost the love of my life so early. I thought it was unfair that the universe play such a game with me, but I didn't let any of it show. I kept it all on the inside for you and Mikasa. I couldn't break down and unravel when you needed me most. I had to be strong for you guys to try and ease the future and make things seem a little brighter than before." Over the course of his talking, Grisha's voice had become strangled, and Eren looked up to see tears in his father's eyes. Eren felt like shit to bring this other side out of his father, but he wanted to clear the water completely and have his father know him. As this thought crossed him, he realized that seeing Armin's family had brought this secret wish to the surface. He had given up on it long ago, but seeing and being encouraged by Armin had made the want stronger.

"I'm sorry I accused you of not loving her. I'm a selfish ass that was too caught up in himself to see that, but why do you want another woman? I want to keep hold of ever piece of mom I still have, and I don't want another woman to come in and steal away the little pieces I have left. I want to keep mom with me. I want to have her burned into my memory and heart forever." Eren kept eye contact with his dad and felt the burn in his eyes and saw his vision blurring.

"Eren," his father said in a pained voice, raw emotion seeping in for the first time Eren can remember. "I know what you mean. I want to keep Karla with me forever too, but she will always be in your heart. She will always be a permant part of you.

"I don't want to replace your mother; I don't want someone to fill her place; no one can. Karla was the love of my life, and there will never be another. I want you to get to know this other woman because she is a good friend of mine. We've know each other since we were interns at the same hospital. We both just want to have a future where there's someone else in the house as we grow old. It's a love that runs so deep since we've been there for each other through so much shit, but it's completely platonic. There's no burning lust, unholy desire, only to people who know each other well and love the friendship." Grisha closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

"The last thing, Rico would do would be to step all over the last piece of your mother's presence that is left. She knows how much that would hurt and how disrespectful it is. She liked Karla and wouldn't want to tarnish and destroy the valued traces of her that we keep." Eren looked down, a single tear falling down his face.

"Rico's the woman you've been seeing?" Eren asked, his anxiety over his mother's memory slowly fading away.

"Yes. In recent years, she has become more lonely in her unrequited love for a certain man and has been wanting to know the comfort of domestic life in later years. Everything we feel is wholly platonic. It's our feelings of loneliness that bring us together into a relationship like this. " Grisha answered, his voice and face losing the pain that had surfaced during they heart-to-heart.

"That's good I guess. I'm happy I don't have to worry about her taking mom's place or being like her. Rico never can be." Eren looked back up at his father and gave him a sheepish smile. Grisha smiled back.

"Yes, Rico can never be like Karla; it would be too tiring for her." Eren gave a small snort of a laugh through his nose.

"We should hang out more." Eren blurted out fast, slightly embarrassed by all the feelings he had conveyed in the last hour alone. Grisha's eyes widened in shock, but his eyes grew soft.

"You've changed a lot, Eren." Grisha smiled warmly, and Eren felt himself blush slightly.

"Well, you have Armin to thank for that. He's one of the best things that has ever happened to me." Eren replied as he got up and made for his room.

Grisha allowed him to go, toi busy thinking about how Eren was finely become a nice, strong, young man.

***

Armin was sitting and rereading One Who Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, when his cellphone rang out with a little blurb from Eine Kleine Naucht Musik. He looked over at it and saw it was a text from Eren.

Eren: Just talked to my dad. It went way better than I planned. 

Armin raised his eyebrows in surprise. He hadn't had expected Eren to talk to his dad so quickly.

Armin: That's good. Does that mean he isn't trying to replace your mother?

A reply came fast.

Eren: Yep. His in a platonic relationship with this lady I've known since I was little and let me tell you she sure as hell can't replace my mom. She's the total opposite.

Armin: Cool. Are you and your dad going to hang out more now that you've told him how you feel? 

Eren: I guess.When I asked he just tried to go on a tangent about how I was changing. I just told him to thank you and left cuz I was embarrassed by all the emotions I've shown today.

As Armin read the text, he felt a light hotness settle over his cheeks. 'I'm changing Eren?' he thought, a little doubtful but awestruck. 'I'm actually changing the guy with the dirty mouth and bad attitude? I find that a little hard to believe, but if Eren's becoming a better person, I'm glad.

Armin: You're giving me to much credit. You're changing because you want to; I have little effect over it.

"Armin! Can you come down here for a second! I need to talk to you!" Grandpa Arlert yelled, from what Armin assumed was the living room by how far away his voice sounded.

"I'll be right there!" Armin responded. He left his phone and his book on the desk, getting up to go see what his grandfather wanted.

When he reached the living room he was suprised to see another person sitting on the couch with his grandfather.

"Uncle Erwin! This is a a surprise." Armin said as he went over to Erwin. Erwin stood up and drew Armin into his strong, warm hug that smelled of apple spice and wood. Armin returned his hug, his head buried in Erwin's chest. They pulled away, and Armin smiled up at Erwin who returned the gesture with a genuine smile of his own that warmed Armin's heart. Armin sat down in the chair by the coffee table, and Erwin reclaimed his seat on the couch next to Grandpa Arlert.

"Now, Armin, how would you feel if Erwin moved in with us?" Grandpa asked, never one to beat around the bush. Armin's eyes widened in surprise at the unexpectedness of the question. His face then settled into a worried expression as millions of bad scenarios ran through his head about why his well off uncle would need to move in.

"I don't mind at all, but is everything okay? This is a very sudden request." Armin asked in a worried tone as he looked back between the two on the couch. To his relief, Erwin let out one of his rich laughs.

"Everything is fine, Armin. I am still financial secure and not in debt."

"I thought it was pretty lonely just being the two of us in the house for so many years, so I thought I should invite Erwin to come live with us. I think it will also be good for you to get to know him better since you two hardly see each other outside of school." Grandpa cut in. Armin looked back between them again, the feeling that something was be omitted hanging over him. He gave up though as he could see no traces of something wrong from either if them and just smiled.

"I think that would be nice." Armin said with a nod to them. 

Each smiled, and Grandpa Arlert told them that Armin and Erwin should try cooking tonight's meal together. Both of them agreed and got up, Armin following Erwin, but was stopped by his grandfather's had on his shoulder.

"You can also ask Erwin more about your mother. He can fill in the gaps of her in your memory better than I can. This way you have someone to tell you each of your parents stories." Grandpa whispered in his ear. Armin felt his heart swell with the part of the reason why Erwin was staying with them.

"Grandpa, you guys didn't have to do that." Armin said, gratitude in his face.

"We wanted to Armin. We both think you should be closer to the family you have left." Grandpa left with a pat to Armin's back as he went to the study.

Armin entered the kitchen and started to help Erwin gather the ingredients for their enchilada casserole. As they stood together at the counter putting it together in the pan, Armin whispered,

"Thank you. You don't have to do this for me." He kept his eyes trained on the task before him, but he knew Erwin was looking down at him.

"Don't worry, Armin, I want to do it. I want to get to know my sister's son better, and this is the perfect way to do it." Erwin said kindly as he rustled Armin's hair.

"Thank you," Armin said again, his face still trained upon the counter.

"No problem, kiddo." Erwin leaned down a planted a kiss on the top off Armin's head. He felt his cheeks burn with embarrassment.

When the casserole was done, they all sat around the old fashioned kitchen enjoying the food and the company.

"This is pretty good. Maybe I should have you guys make dinner all the time." Grandpa Arlert teased as he ate. Armin smiled and playfully roled his eyes.

"Way to get lazy Grandpa. Next you'll be pushing all your housework on Erwin too." Armin said as he shook his head in mock disapproving.

"Well, I'm old. I think I get the right to retire my duties to an abled body man like Erwin. After all, I need some quiet time before I kick the bucket." Grandpa joked back.

Armin knew it was a joke, but he suddenly felt as though his stomach was full of lead. That one phrase had sent Armin's nerves taunt and nervous, thinking about all the truth in that statement. His grandfather was increasingly old, and he was going to have to stop working at one point in the near future. All the pessimistic thoughts in the world pushed to the forefront of his brain, but he pushed them aside and continued as if nothing had happened.

Armin finished dinner and went back up to his room, pretending he still had homework left to do when he had finished it hours ago. Armin sat down at his desk and saw his phone sitting in the middle. 'Right,' he thought, 'I was texting with Eren before I went to dinner.'

Armin picked up his phone and saw he had several texts from Eren.

Eren: You're wrong. I only want to change because of you. I've never once wanted to do it before you made my world wider and gave me hope.

Several minutes later Eren had sent another text when Armin hadn't replied.

Eren: Sorry. That was weird huh? You can forget it happened.

Eren then sent another text, seeming to become more panicked the longer Armin didn't answer.

Eren: Hey you okay? Did I weird you out?

Eren: Armin I'm sorry. Please forget it.

As Armin read them, he couldn't help but laugh. 'God, how could he be such a dork and a softy on the inside, yet also be one of the scariest people I've met who wasn't a bully?' He began to tap out a reply to sooth the worry of his ill tempered and paranoid friend, who had managed to touch his heart with his sweet confession.

Armin: Eren, it's fine. It's really sweet in fact; just watch your step however. Annie might hurt you if you're a smoother talker than her. Also, I was at dinner talking with my grandpa, so I couldn't respond.

Armin hit send and then realized what he just said. 'I'm practically flirting with him! I'm sending out all the wrong signals, just like earlier are school.' He put his head down and lamented his stupidity until he heard his ring tone.

Eren: That's a good way to scare people. Just tell 'em Annie's going to beat their ass. I keep forgetting she would beat the crap out of me for flirting with you. So how was dinner? 

Armin felt his earth race in his chest at the fact Eren basically admitted he was flirting with Armin. 'Shit, I need to nip this in the bud before I give either Annie or Eren ideas.'

Armin: Yeah, Annie can be over protective, but I love her for it. She knows that your just a friend, so I don't think she'll beat the stuffing out of you. Anyway, dinner was nice. I just learned that my uncle is going to move in with us.

Eren: Really? Guess that's cool. What's he like?

'Oh this will be fun to explain him and see his reaction.'

Armin: You want to go out to the park for a little? It's a nice night, and I think it's better to explain him in person.

Eren: sure. Meet you at Titan park.

***

Eren met up with Armin in the chilly November night, catching him off guard as he gazed at the sky.

"Like the stars?" Eren asked from behind Armin, amused when the blonde nearly jumped ten feet.

"Darn it, Eren, I thought I was going to have a heart attack!" Armin answered as he clutched the shirt over his heart. Eren laughed and started walking over to a bench. He saw the blonde follow, and he felt a smile cross his lips.

They sat down on the bench, surrounded by the quiet of the park. It was a peaceful place, and Eren couldn't help but think about how it would have been nice if this was a date.

"So, how awesome or horrible of uncle can he be if you needed to tell me in person?" Eren asked his hand thrown across the back of the bench, his hand near Armin's shoulder. Armin gave a small laugh that was music to Eren's ears.

"He's a pretty great uncle, it's just who he is that's the problem."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Eren asked confused by Armin's cryptic answer.

"My uncle's Mr. Smith, your English teacher." Armin said face on to Eren. Just as Armin had thought it was worth it to go to the park just to see the reaction in person.

Eren's eyebrows knitted together and his mouth formed a small "o". He tried to from words but failed, just shaking his head in disbelief.Eren couldn't wrap his brain around it. Finally, he asked,

"That blonde, sexy beast of a teacher is your uncle? Cute little you is related to a man that screams I'm a fuck god?" Eren saw Armin smile lessen as Eren talked about Erwin.

"I know Erwin is attractive, but I didn't want to know my friend has a crush on him. And yes, he's the brother of my mother." Eren once again mentally compared Mr. Smith and Armin in his mind.

"Wow. How are they related when you look exactly like your mother?" Eren asked and immediately regretted when he saw Armin's smile disappear completely.

"I don't know. I've never meet anyone else from my mother's side. I only really know my dad's side. That's part of the reason why Erwin's moving in, so I can know more about my mother since my grandfather can only tell me a little bit about her."

"I'm sorry for bringing that up. I'm an asshole." Eren said as he wrapped his arm around Armin's shoulders, pulling him closer and into a side hug.

He felt Armin put up no resistance and be drawn closer to Eren. He knew his heart was starting to beat excitedly at the closeness of the blonde and forgot once again that Armin belonged to someone else. He pressed his hand against Armin's head before putting it back against Armin's shoulder when he felt the heaviness of Armin's head on his shoulder. He turned his head and briefly nuzzled the sweet smelling hair, closing his eyes to live in a fantasy land where Armin was his and his alone.

"You're actually not that bad at comforting people. I thought you would suck," Armin told him. Eren felt his heart beat faster, and he laughed a little.

"Well, I never really had the need to do it before, so you never really knew if I sucked."

"You act like a punk, so I assumed you were awkward with social niceties."

"Rude." Was all Eren replied as they settled into a comfortable silence. They sat like that for a long while till some punk assholes decided to ruin it.

"Look it's the gay little trap! Looks like he found another fag to be with!"

"Maybe the other guy thought he was a girl but was such a whore he didn't care."

Eren turned to look at two teenage skaters to the left of the bench leering at Armin. He felt his blood start boiling as he felt Armin retreat from him. He glanced over and saw shame written all over Armin's face along with fear.

"What the hell is your problem assholes?" Eren called out to them as he gave them a death glare.

"Oh look the other fag's defending his 'boyfriend'!" one of the punks taunted.

"Stop referring to Armin that way! He isn't a fag. So why don't you two asswipes take your sorry asses elsewhere before I fuck you up." Eren growled as he got to his feet. He felt a hand on his wrist and looked down to see Armin staring up at him with terrified eyes.

"Don't," he quietly pleaded. "It's fine. They're not all that wron..."

"Don't finish that sentence." Eren said harshly, not wanting to hear Armin say he was okay with this.

"Oh look at that! The gay trap's too afraid of getting his boyfriend hurt! What you gonna do, faggot! Listen to your little deviant, or you gonna get your prissy ass over here and fight us!?" 

"I told you to knock off your stupid shit, assholes!" Eren said as he walked towards them. They walled closer and one of them pushed him back.

Eren took that as a sign to start and gave the skater a swift punch to the cheek. He felt his knuckle connect with bone and heard a crack. He stepped back as the other asshole rushed forward and tripped him. He landed sprawled on the floor.

Eren saw the other guy try to throw a punch at him, grabbed his arm, thrust his other hand under his chin, sweep his leg behind the guy, and flipped him on to his friend.

Eren leaned down over both of them, one hand on one's neck, the other rubbing the other guy's face into the rough concrete of the park's path.

"I'm telling you assholes to leave Armin alone from now on, or you pieces of shit will end up in the hospital like Ian from Garrison high. You understand?" Eren growled threatening low. "If you like your bones whole, you're going to stay as far away from him as possible, and you're going to not make fun of him or bully him in anyway."

"F-f-fine." one of them choked out. "We'll leave him alone!" Eren pulled away and glowered at them.

"Good." Eren released them and watched as they ran away, never giving a backwards glance.

Eren turned and made his way to Armin, who was still sitting on the bench. As he neared, he saw Armin's frame was shaking with his head down. Eren sat down on the bench and ran his fingers through Armin's hair, pushing it behind his ear.

"Are you okay?" Eren asked softly.

"Thank you. You didn't have to do that. It's not the first time someone has done that." Armin's voice came out quiet like he was starting to disappear.

"What do mean I didn't have to do that?" Eren asked, annoyance bubbling under his skin at how Armin was acting like it was a part of daily life.

"Exactly what I said. It wasn't necessary for you to do that. There's always been someone to call me gay, fag, trap because of how I am. It's my fault to. If I didn't look so feminine or if I was more muscular then they wouldn't say that about me." 

Eren felt annoyance turning into rage at the idea people had been abusing Armin his whole life. He shoved his fingers under Armin's hair and turned his face up to look at him. Eren felt his heart break at the sight of tears on Armin's face. He kept Armin's face between his palms as he spoke to him.

"It's not your fault, and it will never be your fault. It's those assholes fault for refusing to see how beautiful you are. You are what a human being should strive to be. You care, you're kind, you're smart, you're funny, you cook, you're just about perfect. You would make the best husband in the world, and your family and Annie are lucky to have you. I'm lucky to have met you because you're making me a better person. You've brought me to life. 

"And you have no reason to feel ashamed for being bullied. They see someone who they're jealous of and everything they wish they could be, and they hate on you. They want to knock you down because they don't think they'll ever reach you. Let them be jealous because they should be. Just own yourself and be confident because they'll leave you alone when they see you don't care. Some people will admire you for your attitude and want to be like you. Armin, your family and Annie love you for who you are. I love you for who you are too, so please don't change because of assholes like them. You're amazing the way you are." Eren said as he gazed into Armin's blue eyes. He saw Armin start crying harder, but he knew it was in relief that someone saw him and still loved him even after something embarrassing like that.

"Thank you." Armin choked out. "Annie was the one who got the bullying to stop in the past. She was the one who built up my confidence and who I turned to when I couldn't tell my grandfather." he confessed, and Eren felt a strong affinity with her.

"I would have done it no matter what because they're wrong to do shit like that. Just forget about it Armin."

"I c-can't. You've just made my world wider." Armin lunged forward and hugged Eren tightly.

Eren returned the hug; he felt a little tipsy at the fact he had helped Armin as he had helped him back on the first day of school, two month's ago. As they sat there, Armin quieted down. Armin pulled away, his face still wet with tears, but his breathe more even.

"Thank you." Armin whispered again as he looked up into Eren's eyes.

Eren felt something stir inside, and he reached out to Armin. He cupped the blonde's face in his hands and leaned in. He saw Armin close his eyes, and Eren kissed away the wetness of his eyelashes. He moved downwards and placed a kiss to Armin's lips, surprised to have Armin kiss him back.

Eren put more pressure against the sweet lips that were under his, excited by the sensation of Armin kissing back. He tentatively suckled on Armin's lower lip and was suprised when Armin obligingly opened his mouth to Eren.

Eren felt his tongue slide against Armin's, and they began a slow tango, full of feeling. It was a slow, sweet kiss that wasn't rushed, not full of lust, but still it was passionate and comfortable, conveying so many unspoken words.

When they pulled away, Eren was slightly out of breath. He looked at Armin and was extremely attracted by the swelling of his now red and wet lips. 

"Armin," he whispered, his hands still cupping the blonde's face.

"Eren," Armin answered, pink cheeked.

"I love you." Eren saw Armin contorted his face in pain.

"We can't do this, Eren. I'm with Annie, and I need to figure out how I feel about both of you. I can't go around cheating on her, and I can't handle polygamy." Eren felt upset, but he knew he had a chance with Armin. Their kiss had told them that; it was full of love, what type, he wasn't sure.

"I'm fine with that. Armin, I love you, and I have no problem waiting for you to decide, even if it's an answer I don't like. I'll always be there for you." Eren answered as he pulled his hands away. He could wait for Armin to be his.

"Eren, thank you. I'm so selfish, but I don't regret this." Armin told Eren with a fierce look. "I don't regret anything involving you. I don't regret if this leads to me discovering a different sexuality, even if my grandfather has a problem with." Eren smiled, happy to see a confident Armin.

"I don't regret anything with you either."

 

The night was quiet and encompassing as they just stared at each other for the longest time. A sense of love filling the air around them and spreading in slow circumference around them, expanding and becoming wider.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! This chapter was doosie for me to write. I have a hard time with heart to hearts because I suck at conveying and articulating my own emotions. I hope you guys found it tear jerking like I was trying to make it! (Probably not since I'm a cry baby.) 
> 
> Thank you for reading, your encouragement and feedback make me feel warm and fuzzy and keep me writing! :)


	6. Feel like the President of the USA

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren meets Armin's friends, and Annie is so mysterious.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wasn't sure what to do with this chapter. I had writer's block for how to progress the plot. But enjoy the long awaited update!

The next day at school Armin couldn't help but feel extraordinarily awkward when he was faced with the two people he held great affection for: Annie and Eren. Eren, much to his relief, acted like nothing had gone on between them, and Annie was the same as usual, occasionally holding hands and rubbing soothing circles into Armin's wrists. He was happy there was no tension between the two, noting how they seemed to get along just fine.

Before the bell for first period had rang, Annie had leaned in close to Armin to whisper in his ear,

"Why don't you invite Eren to sit with us at lunch today? That way he can meet the rest of your friends. He seems to have calmed down enough not to be considered dangerous." 

Armin's mind flittered back to the events in the park last night. He remembered seeing Eren swing fast and hard; he shivered at the image. That had shown him a side to Eren he -on some subconscious level- had know was there, no matter how much he tried to believe it wasn't. Eren did have the ability for violence, and the scene last night reinforced his initial feeling Eren had been kicked out of his other school because of violence. He knew Eren had most likely been a ticking bomb before he came here because of how his life had been. Maybe he was being too presumptuous, but he felt that from the brief glimpse of what he had seen in Eren's room, Eren hadn't known how to express himself in a positive way.

"Armin," Annie whispered again, "you're spacing out. Are you alright?"

Armin turned to look at her, surprised he had allowed himself to get caught up like that. When he turned, he was immediately caught up in her icy blue eyes that seemed to look into his soul.

"Hmm? I'm fine, Annie. I was just thinking about things and got lost in all the possible answers." Armin answered as he looked unwavering into her eyes.

In them he saw so many things: love, worry, knowing. He felt that she some how knew everything that was happening with Eren, even without him saying anything to her. It was one of those things he felt Annie knew way better than he did- even if it did pertain to his inward emotions.

As he once again became lost in thought, no longer staring into Annie's eyes but through them, he felt the soft press of supple skin against his lips. His eyes opened wide at the realization Annie was pressing her lips to his, in a kiss that was as comfortable as any they had ever shared. It was a kiss that conveyed deep seated emotions of caring and love, no heat or lust; it was a kiss that felt as though it was ethereal in the lack of rush, just conveying pure unspoken feels more clearly than words.

When their lips broke apart, Armin felt the deep caring he held for Annie rush to the surface, his reaction the same as the kiss he had shared with Eren last night. He once again gazed into those crystal eyes and remembered how they had started this relationship.

It had been a abnormally chill October day when he had saw a flash of pastel yellow drift past him in the wind in his freshman year. It was a time when Armin had still lacked some of the confidence he had found thanks to Annie; he had walked hurriedly and hunched, constantly in fear other being bullied by the wannabe thugs that had never ceased to leave him alone. It was during one such walk did he see Annie pass by, her appearance immediately catching his interest.

Annie was still as short as she was now, the only difference was the fact that that day her hair was down. He looked at her as she passed by- with who he later learned were Bertholdt and Reiner. It was comical to see her standing between the two giants as they made their way pass him, her, slightly trailing behind. She happened to look to her side, and they had locked eyes. He realized he saw probably the clearest and palest blue eyes he'd yet seen in his life, and the intensity of her gaze left him a little speechless. It was a brief fleeting glance, but it had made his heart threaten to stop.

Throughout the rest of the day, the girl had been stuck in his head, but every time he thought about trying to talk to her, his stomach sank. Maybe it was just because of who she had been walking with or it was the fact he viewed himself as such a loser that he didn't think he would have a chance. So the day passed, and he still thought of the blonde girl with the ice colored eyes.

Much to his joy, he discovered they shared human geography together and learned her name was Annie. He spent weeks agonizing over a way to try and at least talk to her, so much so that he even complained to Jean about it. Jean, however, didn't really have anything productive to offer besides wooing her off her feet with some sort of manliness that he wasn't capable of pulling off and taking her to bed- those had been highly painful conversations. He never got up the nerve to talk to her till one day he was seen by her in the most mortifying way possible- getting his ass beat by bullies.

It was right after class had been let out for the day when he had been cornered by two punks: Daz and Samuel. They grabbed his arm from behind and had thrust him up against the wall, his head making cold hard contact with it. He winced as stars danced across his eyes, but forced them open when he had felt a hand clenching his throat.

"So looks like we meet again, you little fag. How about taking us up on a special offer? We'll fuck you till you can't walk or beat your ass black and blue. Which one sounds better?" Daz asked in a cruel harshly playful tone. 

"Neither sounds great. How do you derive such a sick satisfaction from bullying people who out reason you? Besides, how can you call me a fag when your the ones who want to do a guy in the first place? Doesn't that mean that you're the ones with a queer perspective?" Armin asked, his voice shaking with both fear and anger. He swallowed as well as he could with his windpipe slightly compromised, waiting for the worst. He saw their face contort into unbridled anger at the accusation to their sexuality.

"What was that, you little gay ass trap?" Samuel growled into his face, jaw gnashing. Armin turned away slightly to keep the amount of surface area visible for a hard right to the minimum. As he turned he felt a splash of warmth on his cheek, the sun's bright golden light piercing through his closed eyes.

The first hit was painful, leaving a bright red mark on his face. The second was even more brutal, making him double over with a sharp pain in his gut. After that, the third caused his nose to bleed; a knee made hard solid contact with the less solid cartilage of it. The fifth caused his lip to bust open, blood, uninvited, rushed into his mouth as he let out a sharp gasp pierced by a sob. The sixth had him falling to his knees, hot tears spilling from his eyes. The last, a kick, sent him onto the ground. He sobbed, unwillingly, as he saw a foot raised to stomp his defeated, bleeding form when it was thrown back.

He raised his face and removed his hands to see the girl, her foot upon Samuel's chest, and her hand at the collar of Daz's shirt. He felt august wash over him at the fact she had two boys so much bigger than her cowering. 

"Stop being such homophobic assholes, you douche bags. Leave Armin alone before I kick both your asses into the nearest hospital. Do you understand? Or do I need to put you scumbags in your place, like you do to people you think don't know it?" she whispered, dangerously low and calm. Armin shivered with dread. 

Daz's eyes were large and frightful as he nodded his head, mouth opening and closing like a dying fish. She thrust him away from her then squatted down over Samuel.

"Did you hear everything I told the other jackass or do I need to reiterate it?" Samuel shook his head wildly, looking up with fear akin to a man sentenced to death. She snorted and got off of him, her back turned away from Armin as she watched Samuel run. She turned around to face him and squatted down beside him.

"Are you okay?" Her normal scowl was replaced by a tender kind look, her monotone taking on the barest hint of compassion.

"Annie?" Armin questioned as she looked down at him. He lowered his hands and sat up, his stomach clenching painfully.

"Are you okay, Armin?" Annie asked again, bringing her hand up to push the hair away from his face. He felt the tears still leaking from his eyes and was more embarrassed than he had ever felt in his life.

"I'm fine," he tried to answer gruffly but his voice was wrecked by a gasp. "Thank you." He felt like crap to have been seen in this level of humiliation. He had kept this so totally hidden that even Jean didn't know- he knew he could tell him, he was just so afraid to own up to being so stupid, so worthless, so humiliating.

"Let me see your face." 

Armin let Annie touch his face, turn his head from side to side to inspect the damage. He tried to keep his mind blank, but all that came to mind was someone learning about his shameful secret. Someone had finally seen him at his worst, and he was waiting for her to turn away or rip into him herself. With every gentle touch and close look, every gentle brush and small puff of breathe, he felt anxiety build up in him. A new set of tears fell unwanted from his eyes.

"Does it hurt that bad?" she asked as she pulled away slightly, pulling out a handkerchief.

"Why are you being so nice? How can you just step in and stop them from beating me up? How can you look at me and not feel like I'm the biggest eyesore in the world?" Armin sobbed out quietly, his breathing becoming more erratic. Annie tilted her head and her eyebrows knotted together.

"Why should I be mean to you? Why should I act like those dicks who are going to rot in hell? There's nothing wrong with you. You're gay, so what? You're not the most athletic? Big deal. You're still amazingly smart; from the little I've seen, you care; you're funny, and you help friends. You are a beautiful person, and those jackasses see that and hate you for it. Do you feel ashamed because you're bullied? You shouldn't. It's because they see you as a threat, or they don't notice how good you are that they do that. It doesn't mean that you're wrong. You're still a good person even if they decide to shit on you. I've had people tell me I'm weird and scary my whole life, but it's because they don't understand me that they do that. That doesn't mean I'm wrong, they are. If they don't even bother trying knowing me then it's their problem for refusing to look. Don't let them get to you. Keep your head held high. People will still be your friends and will still love you even if they see this because they care. If they're truly a friend they'll stick by you and accept you." Annie said in a low, heated, passionate voice. Armin looked at her and felt himself start crying harder.

"Really? You would still like me even after seeing this?" He motioned around himself. "You would still want to be my friend?"

"Yes. There's nothing wrong with you. In fact, I could probably connect with you better than others since you know what it's like to be different." Annie replied kindly with a small smile. It was the first Armin had ever seen her give, and it was breathtaking.   
After that, they had become friends. Then from there best friends, and Armin had found himself attracted to her in a way he had never been attracted to anyone else. However, it was still kind of a rocky slope to actually ask her out since she thought he was gay (he was not and is not), but he had finally convinced her. They started going out towards the end of freshman year and were still a thing now.

"Armin?" Annie asked softly as she gently pulled on the tip of his nose. Armin was forced back to the present and rubbed his nose, once again met with her icy eyes.

"Sorry. I was remembering how we first really met." he told her with a smile. Annie's eyes widened in surprise but settled in a gentle smile she so rarely gave.

"Well, I hope it was a fun trip down memory lane."

"It was only fun because you were the center of it."

"Really?" Her smile changed into a sly grin. "Don't forget to invite Eren to sit with us. I think he should meet the rest of us since he's so important to you." Armin felt his stomach drop a little but still smiled anyway.

"Yep."

***

Armin walked into art and was immediately jumpy. He was worried about seeing Eren again after their kiss in the park. He had sent all sort of signals that were bound to hurt everyone involved. He sighed and looked towards the table he shared with Eren. His breath got caught in his throat when he saw the teal orbs were focused on him. He made his way over and sat down sheepishly.

"Hey." Armin said in a small voice. He glanced over at Eren and saw a quiet, almost nonexistent smirk on his lips.

"Hey, Armin." Eren answered, slouched in his seat like usually. Armin glanced back at Eren as Mr.Pixis walked to the front of the class.

"I want all of you to attempt a portraiture of someone important to you. It doesn't have to be in this class or school. It can be a family member or other person. So that will be your project for this week. For today, however, I would like you to draw your partner. " Mr. Pixis said as he handed out large pieces of paper to the tables.

Armin felt his stomach twist nervously. He didn't know if he could stand having Eren looking at him for a whole hour. He looked over at the other boy and saw a look of impassiveness on his face, betraying nothing.

"Don't worry. Things will work out, Arlert." Pixis whispered in his ear as he handed them their paper. Armin looked up at him with a confused expression.

"Thank you ... sir?" Armin answered. He was just greeted with a knowing grin.

Silence settled upon the two as they began to draw each other. Every time Armin looked up, he saw a heated passion in Eren's eyes when they met. Those looks left him unsettled and nervous- more nervous than he had ever felt in his life. The silence pervaded and only increased Armin's tension.

"So..." Armin said, breaking the silence, "want to sit with me and my friends at lunch? They and I really want you to meet them. They're really curious about you ..." Armin glanced up at Eren and just saw him staring blankly at him.

"Are you sure you want me to meet them?" Eren asked with a look of concern on his face. "You know I'm not the most docilest." Armin eyebrows shot up in alarm.

"Of course I want you to meet them! You're a very important person to me, and I want them to get to know you." Armin said frantically, trying to reassure Eren he was wanted. Eren raised an eyebrow. Then a smirk slowly broke out across his face.

"Have I told you you're adorable when you're flustered." Armin felt his cheeks burn.

"Eren!" Eren laughed.

"I'm sorry, but it's true. Anyways, sure I'll meet your friends. Just know there's no guarantees that we'll get along." Armin settled back in his chair, a pout on his face.

"You're a butt sometimes. I think you guys will get along just fine. Ymir and Jean are kinda hard to adjust to, but they're good people. Everyone else is pretty relaxed." Eren nodded and went back to sketching Armin, his brow knitted in concentration as he drew. Armin let the conversation die, knowing he had to finish the picture.

Five minutes before the bell rang, Armin was done. He looked it over again and thought it was somehow one of the best works he had done so far. The lines were clean and dark, the shading gradual and realistic. When he looked up, he noticed Eren was done also. He sat up straighter in his chair to see what Eren had draw and his breath was taken away.

It was him, yet it was too beautiful to be him. Something about the style Eren had used had given him this surreal type of feeling that seemed to draw out the features he liked best about himself. His eyes and his smile seem to come alive in the drawing. All he could do was look at it until Eren spoke.

"Do you like it?" Eren asked, tentative hidden in his voice.

"Yes. It's ... it's beautiful. It's hard to believe that's me." Armin answered as he looked into Eren's eyes.

Eren blushed and turned away. His face was blank, but Armin knew he was feeling something happy. Eren got up and took Armin's paper with him to turn into Pixis.

"It's only beautiful because you are." Eren said as he walked away.

Armin blushed and knew that he needed to figure something out soon so that there was no more confusion and love triangles.

***

Lunch came too soon for Eren. He was nervous to met Armin's friends because they were important people to him. He didn't want to screw up and have any chance with him ruined.

Eren walked to the table where he saw Armin's blonde hair sitting between Annie and some kid with two toned hair. 'What the hell is up with that? Does he think it's cool?' Eren thought ideally as he made his way over. As he drew closer he could hear the words and laughter that flitted across the wind. 'Your world will be made wider, will be made better.' Eren told himself as he tried to keep calm, a colassus romping around in his stomach and making him nervous.

"Eren!" Armin called out cheerfully as he waved a hand in his direction. Eren felt himself relax at the sound of Armin's voice, if just slightly.

"Hey." Eren called back as he reached the table, all the occupants turning to look at him. A hush fell over the table that only seemed to increase the nervous feeling he had.

"Sit down." Armin said as he patted the space across from him. Eren could tell he was trying to calm him down from his friends reactions. Eren took the seat and the quiet still pervaded. "Soooo," Armin started looking around at his friends, "this is Eren." 

Eren looked at the people. Some nodded their heads, others just stared at him in dumbstruck(?) awe. Those type of people were a girl with a long brown ponytail and the small boy next to her with a shaved head. Three people though, he was glad to notice, were smiling at him. One was a huge blonde dude at the end of the table near the dumbstruck duo; the second was a freckled boy next to the dude with the two toned hair, and the last was the small blonde chick beside him who was next to an abrasive-looking girl with freckles. It was the small blonde that broke the silence.

"Nice to meet you. Armin has told us a lot about you; we've been waiting on the edge of our seat to meet the amazing guy he's been so fascinated with." the blonde said as she stuck out her hand. Eren gave her his and was surprised to see that her hand was so dwarfed in his. "I'm Krista." she added and motioned to the girl next to her. 

"Ymir." the befreckled chick answered. "I been interested in how nerdy you could be if Armin liked you, but you're not. How surprising." Eren felt his face get a little hot at her comment, noticing Armin was going slightly pink.

"Ymir!" Krista chided. Ymir rolled her eyes and then the tall giant that had been next to the blonde dude spoke.

"Ymir likes to speak her mind a lot, but she's not unkind. I'm Bertholdt." The giant extended his hand across the table and Eren took it, surprised at the size and clammy feeling.

The next to speak was the blonde next to Bertholdt, who playful slugger his shoulder and whispered something about girlfriend. He gave Eren a bright smile as he also gave his hand. Eren took it, noticing the callousness of his palm.

"I'm Reiner, Bertholdt's best friend and Krista's boyfriend. It's nice to meet you. Armin's talked about you a lot, so we were all curious."

"Yeah!" the girl with the brown ponytail interjected. "Armin would talk about you like you were some marine animal he likes."

"Yeah, dude, we were getting tired of hearing about." the bald kid interrupted.

"Connie! Try to be nice!" the girl chided. Connie rolled his eyes.

"Alright, Sasha." He turned to Eren. "I'm Connie and this is Sasha." he explained as he motioned at her. "We've been eagerly awaiting you to see who could make Armin talk everyone ears off about something other than school."

"Hey!" Armin interjected, his face reddder than the last time Eren had looked at him.

"Sorry about them, they're a little too energetic." the freckle boy said as Eren turned to look at him. "I'm Marco." He extended his hand a gave a warm smile. Eren returned the smile, feeling the same kind of relaxation that Armin inspired.

"I'm Jean, his boyfriend." the two-toned kid said, thrusting his hand to Eren. Eren took it, unsure of how to feel about him. 'Armin said he was hard to get along with. I wonder if it's true.' Eren was brought out of his thoughts as Jean spoke again.

"I think all of us have been looking forward to the guy who Ar can ramble on about like there's no tomorrow." Jean teased as he ruffled Armin's hair.

"Stop it Jean-bo." Armin huffed as he pushed away Jean's hands. Eren felt a twinge of anger at how easily Jean touched Armin.

"Well, now that you've met all of us, we hope you'll actually come back." Jean said as he turned his sharp eyes on Eren.

"I probably will. Armin likes you guys, so I don't see a reason why I shouldn't." Eren answered, trying to keep his voice as emotionless as possible for fear of sounding annoyed.

"Oh? You'd only come back for Armin? How sad for the rest of us." Eren felt his jaw clench.

"Once I got to know you guys I'm sure I would be friends with you. Initially I would be more inclined because of Armin, but isn't that a freakin' normal way for people to meet?" he asked, a slight edge in his voice. Jean quirked an eyebrow.

"Yeah, it is. Sorry for giving you a hard time. I was just trying to see what type of person you are." Jean let out a little laugh as he held his hand out.

Eren let out a little smile, and put out his hand. They bro-fisted, and Eren decided to let it go that this hipster had pissed him off for the sake of Armin.

Eren stayed at the table, joining in on the conversation that were the farthest from Jean, noticing with a pained heart that Armin and Annie seemed in their own little world. When lunch ended, he was the first to leave, walking to his fifth period. He didn't noticed he had a companion until a small hand grasped his arm. He looked back, and to his surprise, saw Annie.

"I didn't know you walked this way." Eren replied as Annie fell into step with him.

"I have math this way." she replied curtly. Eren nodded, feeling awkward at having to be with the person that kept him from Armin.

Silence settled between them, but somehow it wasn't uncomfortable. As they neared their classrooms though, Annie broke the silence.

"You have a crush on Armin, right?" Eren thought his heart was going to stop.

"No! Why are you even fucking asking me that?! Are you picking a fight?!" Annie smirked, and he felt slightly pissed.

"Don't lie. I'm don't care if you do, it just means he's as important to you as he is to me." Annie told him. "Besides, I want to thank you for protecting him last night. You were there for him when I couldn't be. There's no way I could be upset if you love him if you do something like that for him. I couldn't hate you if you tell him it's okay to be himself. He's strong, but I know he has doubts. You also being there for him is helping him grows in ways I can't help him to. Thank you for taking care of him. You're holding my heart in your hand." Annie said as she left him behind.

Eren let out a slow breath and looked up at the sky. 'I'm helping him?' He felt a slight smile tug at his lips. 'That's the all I could ever want. If I help him break his cycle, there's nothing that keeps mine from doing the same. It seems like our circles will resonate with each other, growing together. It's the only thing I would wish for: be by his side and grow with him.'

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part of the reason it took so long was because I was afraid for Eren to meet Armin's friends. I knew Jean was going to be an asshole, but I wasn't sure how much. I was afraid he was going to have Eren punch because he was too a-holish.
> 
> As always thanks for reading! I love you guys and would like to hear what you think of it.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Please feel free to leave comments and give me feed back about the chapter. I love you guys and your support!


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